The Doctor and the Wolf
by Anubis Enfield
Summary: There comes a point, when you begin to lose faith in humanity and when you're an alien trapped on the planet of bald apes for nearly five hundred years, you lose that faith much faster. "Rose, I think we overlooked something..."
1. Chapter 1

**Wanted a more realistic werewolf situation. None of that superhuman powers while _not_ a werewolf or anything. Something more believable... I guess.**

* * *

I had another one of those dreams again. I dreamt of home. Of the moonlit skies, the festivals, the sound of drums, the howls that echoed through the night, and the deep, evergreen forests that covered nearly the entire planet. I dreamt of my brother, his face very nearly forgotten after so long of my being trapped here on this lump of rock called Earth. All I had left, was the picture of him and I, so faded that both our faces were wiped away. All I could see was that toothy grin of his, but that was enough to keep me from throwing away the old, crumpled photograph.

Cries of alarm rang out, men shouting for us to grab our weapons and hurry out into combat as sirens went off alerting us to enemy planes flying overhead. Humans were so idiotic. Always fighting themselves and not even noticing the danger that hung right over their heads, or right under their noses. Words spoke of a monster that appeared during the nights of the full moon and slaughtered many of the enemy. A creature black as the night with teeth sharp as knives and eyes the cold silver of the moon.

Men on both sides were afraid of it, refusing to go out once the moon was in the sky, and I became to go-to volunteer. Humans were so clueless. They saw me as a scrawny lad, unable to hold my own on the field and left to do idle chores more often than not. And when I was sent out, they waited to see if I never came back, but I always did. I came back in better shape than most, not a scratch in most cases. They believed me to have hid, been a coward. Little did they know, I'd killed more humans than my entire squad all together. I needed to keep in shape, after all. If I ever did get a chance to get off this rock, I needed to be prepared.

I was a soldier. Here and back on my planet. I'd crash landed here when there was a malfunction with the ship that was supposed to transport myself and three others to the battlefront on another planet. I escaped, two others died, and the third vanished by the time I was awake. That was near four hundred years ago. I'd sent out an SOS near two centuries ago in the hopes that they'd send a ride back and I hadn't heard from them yet. Two centuries wasn't long in our terms, so I'd occupy myself here until I could return and give a report; if not return to what I'd gone to do in the first place.

"Anything to get off this planet." I murmured, plopping a green helmet on over my short hair as I left my tent and joined the rest of my squad.

 _Not letting women fight. What a joke. They couldn't spot one for the life of them anyway. My being here is proof of that._ I smirked though, feeling adrenaline pump through my veins as I glanced up at the slowly darkening sky. _And it's a full moon. The Central Powers won't stand a chance._

* * *

There comes a point, when you begin to lose faith in humanity and when you're an alien trapped on the damn planet of bald apes for nearly five hundred years, you lose that faith _much_ faster. Like now, for instance.

"You damn monkey! Let me out of here! I'll tear you to shreds, you pest!"

The man driving the large armored truck I was stuck in, laughed.

"Not likely! And good luck trying. That's reinforced steel with silver paneling. _Perfect_ for sealing away your kind."

I growled deep in my throat and threw my battered body against the doors once more, ignoring his laughter the best I could with silent curses on humanity. _I hope you all get sick with some stupid pink weasel disease and die because your technology_ sucks _!_ I backed up again, preparing myself for another run at it, only for my feet to suddenly be lifted up off the ground. I didn't even have a second to react to the truck abruptly flipping and I was knocked out upon hitting one of the walls. When I awoke, I let out a groan and wearily sat up while clutching at my head. Looking around and finding myself sitting on what had been the ceiling was disconcerting, and I suddenly felt a pang of worry flash through me.

"O-Oi! Oi, driver person! This crappy travel device you call a car just flipped! I don't think you did it right!... Hello?"

There was complete silence from the other side of the small window of bars separating me from him, but what I did smell, was the copper taint of blood and I groaned quietly.

"Always so weak. I wonder why you've never been conquered." I complained, before realization dawned on me and I pressed my face against the bars desperately. "H-Hey, come on now. Please tell me it's just a scratch or something. I can't be trapped back here. I-I'm still wearing the handcuffs, even! Did you at least send out a distress signal first?! Oi!"

I continued to shout at him like this for a while, until I concluded that he had indeed passed away and I slumped back against the wall of my small prison.

"Who doesn't install their mobile vehicles with automated distress signals? Idiots!" I grumbled, banging my aching head against the wall behind me as I realized that I might very well be stuck here for good.

And without food or water, I would very quickly die in here. Despite my grievances with the human race, I was only as strong as a few of their men, when not changed. And with the moon cycles on this planet being so far apart, it would be a miracle if someone actually came to my rescue. Much less a human who _wouldn't_ attack me. _There was only one, and even he…_ My thought trailed off as an image of a smiling face came to mind, before it quickly changed to one of fear and I jolted awake.

I'd been trapped in the van for two days now, and I was starving and _very_ thirsty. I knew I would only last another day at most without water; though the sound of rain outside made me wonder if there was some way I could get some. _Just a little bit…_ I couldn't though. Not with the cuffs on my wrists, which I had long since given up on. My wrists were stained red with blood from them by now, what with all of my struggling, but that was the least of my problems. The silver made me sick and being surrounded by it for so long, not to mention having it physically touching me… Well, let's just say, I'm lucky I've yet to throw up in my tiny cell. Just the thought of the metal made my stomach churn and it took everything in me not to hurl as I curled up in a ball in the corner of the room, _begging_ the Gods of my home planet to help me find a way out of this.

I'd just started to fall asleep again, perhaps for the _last_ time, when I thought I heard something. I deemed the noise a hallucination from being around the silver too long, up until I heard a branch crunch underfoot of someone and voices. They didn't sound too far off from where I was and I pulled myself up to the barred window; ready to call for help when I hesitated. _What if they do this to me again? I can't trust humans. They don't do anything but fight and kill their own and take anything that's different and lock it up for torture._ I winced at the thought, but I already felt so weak and with everything I'd been through in 466 years, nothing really mattered anymore other than living long enough to finally be free.

"H-Help!" I called out, voice croaky and not very loud.

I'd all too often tried shouting for help to no avail and now it was coming back to bite me. I kept trying though, until my voice was so weak, _I_ could barely hear it. Whoever was out there had come a bit closer, but probably not enough to notice the toppled over van I was in, so I tried plan B. I scooted over and lifted a foot, slamming it into the wall before me. The loud, echoing 'bang' made my ears ring, but I continued in the hopes whoever was out there could hear that. After nothing for a while, I sagged against the wall defeated, until I heard a voice; just outside the van.

"Hey! Is there somebody in there?!"

I cleared my throat as best I could, trying to get up, only to tumble down harshly on my knees before the door. I pushed past the pain though and forced myself to reach the doors and attempt to shout through the small crack between them.

"P-Please, help!"

"Stand back!"

I scooted away from the doors, thanking the Gods as there was this strange noise and the lock on the door clicked open and they were pulled apart; revealing the first bit of daylight that I'd felt in ages. It took a few seconds to get my eyes to adjust from the dark interior of the van to the light, but I was soon able to see my saviors. The first, was a young human woman with blonde hair, who looked at me worriedly and cautiously. The other though, was a tall lanky man with hair spiked up high on his head and a look of curiosity and concern on his face as he looked me over.

"You alright? How long have you been in there?" He asked and I slowly placed my feet on the ground and made to stand.

"Much, _much_ too long." I breathed out, standing up, only for my legs to go weak and my entire body to shut down; throwing me into unconsciousness.

* * *

I awoke to hear voices nearby, not alerting them as I listened in.

"Will she be alright? It's already been a whole day."

"She should be waking up any moment now. The bigger question is, what was she doing in the back of that van?"

"You think she was a criminal or something?" It was the younger woman speaking, I realized.

The blonde who'd assisted the other man in getting me from the van. Meaning he was the other voice I was hearing; unable to open my eyes with the brightness of the room.

"Not a criminal, no. That was a UNIT van, meaning she's… well, she's not from Earth."

"What? But she looks human."

I mentally cursed, knowing that if these two were anything like the people I knew on Earth, then it was possible that I could very well be in a _lot_ of trouble.

"Well, not all aliens look alien. I'm proof of that."

 _So he's_ not _human?_

He continued. "But there's not a whole lot of aliens that can pass off as human without some sort of perception filter. Problem is, the Tardis won't tell me what her species is for some reason."

"Is she dangerous though?" The girl asked and I mentally scoffed, knowing just how dangerous I could be.

"Dunno. I suppose we'll find out soon enough and I'll definitely keep my eye on her until we know further. Being handcuffed in the back of a UNIT van doesn't tell us much other than UNIT wanted her for something or another. And judging by the scars…" He trailed off, sounding almost… concerned. "…it wasn't anything pleasant."

"It wasn't." I grumbled, alerting them to my presence and having had enough of this discussion. "Where am I?"

The man stepped forward. "On my ship. You've been out for about a day. How are you feeling?"

"Sore." My stomached growled. "And hungry. Do you have any lamb?"

 _Oh, the delicacy of that Earth creature._ Far _better than anything on my planet._

"Uh, sure. I could probably fix you up some. I'm the Doctor, by the way, and this is Rose."

Rose waved her hand with a small smile. "Hello."

Humans couldn't really pronounce my name with their tongue, so I went with one of my many aliases.

"Lux. I'm Lux Hemming. I appreciate you releasing me from that van."

"Oh, it was nothing much. We were just… passing through." He said, rubbing the back of his neck and eyeing me rather suspiciously. "What, uh… What were you doing in there, anyway? How long were you trapped for?"

"They were transporting me to another facility." I said, testing my legs as I stood a little shakily. "I do not know what for. And I was in the van for perhaps a dozen hours before it crashed and then two more days before you both showed up. I've been with the human group for nearly a decade however."

"You've been there for that long?" Rose questioned in surprise and I blinked at her naivety.

"A decade is nothing to my species."

"And what species is that?" The Doctor asked curiously, drawing my attention to him and I frowned.

"And why should I trust you with that knowledge? You both appear human and telling any human what I am has only caused me to end up in positions like that one. I am not so stupid to blindly give away who I am without good cause to do so."

"Fair enough." He muttered, not looking pleased, but apparently understanding as he headed to the door. "Rose can go ahead and show you where the showers are and I'll prepare some food while we wait. I'll have my ship move the wardrobe next to that so you can get some clothes, seeing as yours are not really ideal at the moment."

I nodded, allowing the blonde to lead me out and to another room where I showered and searched through the wardrobe for something more suited for my tastes. I was reluctant to leave my old clothes, since they were the only ones I had from my home planet, so I took them with me once I'd changed; heading out in some dark pants and shoes, with a loose shirt, vest, and a square scarf. I wasn't sure where to go from there, but some lights flickered down the hall and I followed them only to catch the scent of freshly cooked meat and followed that the rest of the way to the kitchen.

"Ah, I was just about to send Rose to get you." The Doctor said. "Find something you like?"

"Yes." I said, glancing down at my old clothes. "Is there some way to wash these? I… do not wish to part from them just yet."

He caught my gaze and remained silent for a second, before nodding. "Yeah. Just, uh… Leave them by the door and the Tardis will pick them up and take care of them."

"Tardis?" I questioned and he nodded.

"My ship."

I wasn't sure what he meant by his ship picking up my clothing, but did as he asked and moved to sit at the table with Rose, before he placed a plate down before me. I quickly dug in, savoring the taste of the lamb and soon got seconds and even thirds.

"I take it you like lamb?" Rose chuckled and I nodded, biting into my fourth round of food.

"The creatures on this planet are strange, but delicious." I said through a mouthful of food.

"So, what's your planet like?"

I paused, thinking back to the dreams I have nearly every night of my home planet. _And oh, how I wish to return._

"Nothing special." I lied, returning to eating at a slower pace. "Much like your forests here, but with much longer moon seasons."

"Moon seasons?" She questioned and I mentally cursed myself for giving away something like that already.

"Yes." I said, trying to play off how nervous I was about them now. "Your moon seasons are short and only come once a month, while ours last much longer and happen many more times."

"Oh, you mean like the full moon and stuff, right?"

I hesitantly nodded, but it seemed these two were clueless as to just how important that information was to recognizing what I was _. And if I'm lucky, they won't find out and I could just be dropped off somewhere safely._

"Well, why don't you just let us know where your planet is and we'll go ahead and drop you off." The Doctor hummed as I pushed my empty plate away.

"I can't."

He blinked. "Well, sure you can. We're not out to attack you or anything. Just a quick drop off and then we'll leave."

I shook my head. "No. I mean that I cannot return to my planet. They will execute me if I return."

"What? What for?" Rose asked and I sighed.

"My ship crashed here nearly 500 years ago and I sent out an SOS but have yet to receive a response. It has been too long for me to respond and they will execute me for treason if I return after having been gone for this long without a word."

"Treason? Seems a bit harsh for an accidental crash landing." The Doctor said, suspicious and I frowned at him.

"I have no proof it was such. Myself and three others were on our way to another planet hen we crashed. Two of them are dead and the other vanished before I awoke. I have no witnesses to the incident and we were supposed to be fighting our enemy ages ago."

"You're a soldier." He concluded and I nodded.

"Was. They will have believed me to have run away cowardly. And to return now will be my death sentence. Our courts are not lenient when it comes to situations such as these. You would be better off leaving me at some other planet on my own than sending me back there."

The two exchanged looks and after a moment, the Doctor sighed, pulling a hand through his hair.

"Well, we can't really do that. Doesn't seem right, to me. And I don't want to just go leaving ya in that kind of shape so… I suppose you can come with us for a bit. That is, only until you're healed up enough to be on your own. If you want to, anyway."

I eyed him, suspiciously. "Come with you?"

"Yeah." Rose said, looking rather pleased by the idea. "We sort of, um, travel. See. In time and space."

The Doctor nodded, sort of warming up to the idea as well now. "That's what Tardis stands for. Time and Relative Dimensions in Space. She's a time and space machine."

I couldn't help but admit I was kind of curious to travel with them, but was still hesitant. They were humans. Seemingly _nice_ humans, but humans none-the-less. The Doctor apparently wasn't, but whatever species he was, it seemed he'd been moderately human-fied as well. I couldn't trust them, really. Rose may be naive, but the Doctor was not and I knew he would keep his eye on me. It was a cause for worry, but that curiosity overwhelmed me and I reluctantly nodded.

"Very well. I will… join you on your travels until I am well enough to be on my own." I said, wrinkling my nose in distaste at how childish I sounded.

The Doctor grinned, however, clapping his hands in excitement. "Alrighty then! I've got the perfect place in mind. How's England in the 1970s, hm?"

"Sounds great." Rose smiled as I bobbed my head.

The seventies weren't too bad for me while I'd been around. A lot less torture and more relaxing on my own for a bit.

"Sounds fine to me."

"Well, then, let's go! Rose, you better go get changed. Lux…" He looked me over before shrugging. "Eh, that'll do. I'll show you the control panel. Come on!"

I questioned at first, why he'd show me something so important as the control panel of his ship but once there, I realized why. _No one would be able to steal this thing with that many controls. The whole system is_ much _too complicated. This man must be some sort of genius!_ I mused, looking over everything in a sort of shock as he bounded around flipping levers and pressing buttons. He went off to get something from nearby and Rose returned in a burgundy shirt and overalls, digging through a backpack nearby.

"What do you think? Will it do?"

"In the late 1970s? You'd be better off in a bin bag. Hold on, listen to this."

It was a CD he'd gotten, apparently, and music filled the room.

"Ian Dury and the Blockheads. Number one in 1979." He informed us, turning to me. "You heard of them, Lux?"

I shook my head. "I dislike the music on this planet."

He looked at me stunned. "All of it? There has to be something you like."

I thought about it with a small frown. "Classical, possibly. The rest is noise to me."

He pouted as Rose chuckled, listening to the song.

"You're a punk!"

He smiled a little at that, getting into the song himself and singing it. "'It's good to be a lunatic'."

"That's what you are." Rose continued playfully as I roamed around. "A big old punk with a bit of rockabilly thrown in."

"Would you like to see him?" The Doctor asked, more to her than me since my taste in human music wasn't appeasing to him.

"How'd you mean? In concert?"

"What else is a Tardis for? I can take you to the Battle of Trafalgar, the first anti-gravity Olympics, Caesar crossing the Rubicon, or Ian Dury at the Top Rank, Sheffield, England, Earth, 21st November, 1979. What do you think?" He turned to me then, awkwardly. "You get a vote too, Lux."

I shrugged. "Wherever she wants to go is fine."

 _I could care less either way. Earth is Earth._

"Sheffield it is." Rose smiled.

"Hold on tight." The Doctor grinned back and I took hold of a rail; expecting a light amount of turbulence and _not_ the disastrous ride we got instead.

I think I even saw him hitting the console with a hammer at a point, before we were all thrown onto our backs. Rose and him laughed, but I groaned, still very much sore.

"1979, hell of a year!" He shouted, getting up and heading over to me; offering me a hand. "You alright there?"

I glared, getting up on my own, still not trusting him. "Where did you learn to fly this ship? That was horrid!"

He pouted as I brushed myself off, wincing a bit at my sore wrists that were bandaged and aching at the motion. He didn't take my comment to heart though and just picked up where he left off with Rose.

"China invades Vietnam. The Muppet Movie. Love that film. Margaret Thatcher. Ugh. Skylab falls to Earth, with a little help from me. Nearly took off my thumb." He said, opening the door. "And I like my thumb. I need my thumb. I'm very attached to—"

There was a sound of cocking guns and I stiffened, immediately reaching for the small dagger I kept at my side.

"—my thumb." The Doctor finished idly, hands in the air. " _18_ 79\. Same difference."

I scowled at him, growling under my breath. " _Big_ difference. I _hate_ the 1800s."

"Sorry." He muttered apologetically, spotting my hand on my dagger and pushing it back with a shake of his head.

I frowned, not wanting to listen to him, but with the number of men aiming guns our way, I knew we were outmatched and a dagger wouldn't do much against a bullet. _Especially since it's the middle of the day and I haven't the slightest when the next moon season is. So I'm as human as the rest of them for now. Best come up with another plan._ The Doctor seemed to be on top of that though, switching to a heavy Scottish accent as the man on the horse addressed us.

"You will explain your presence. And the nakedness of this girl." He said, gesturing to Rose who made a face.

"Are we in Scotland?" The Doctor questioned and the man gave him a look.

"How can you be ignorant of that?"

I glared at the Doctor, hoping he could get us out of this because all of my ideas involved some sort of fight, where in someone would get hurt.

"Oh, I'm, I'm dazed and confused. I've been chasing this, this wee naked child over hill and over dale. Isn't that right, ya… timorous beastie."

Rose tried to play along.

"Och, aye! I've been oot and aboot." She said in a bad accent, making me wince as the Doctor tried to stop her.

"No, don't do that."

"Hoots man."

"No, really don't. Really."

The man on the horse ignored her strange behavior. "Will you identify yourselves, sirs?"

I realized he meant me too, but the Doctor spoke first.

"I'm Doctor James McCrimmon, from the township of Balamory. And this is my assistant, Lux Hemming. I have our credentials, if I may." He pulled out some paper and showed the man. "As you can see, a Doctorate from the University of Edinburgh. I trained under Doctor Bell himself."

The man seemed hesitant and I looked for another way out of this, but a voice spoke from behind him in the carriage he was leading.

"Let them approach."

"I don't think that's wise, ma'am." He said, though something about the voice seemed familiar.

"Let them approach." She repeated, and he begrudgingly allowed it.

"You will approach the carriage and show all due deference."

The Doctor gave him a small salute, grinning wildly at Rose and I as we approached the carriage and a man opened it to reveal someone I didn't expect to see for a long while.

"Rose, Lux. Might I introduce her Magesty Queen Victoria. Empress of India and Defender of the Faith." The Doctor smiled as Rose curtsied.

"Rose Tyler, ma'am. And my apologies for being so naked."

"I've had five daughters. It's nothing to me." The Queen said, before turning to me with a small smile. "And you, Mister Hemming. I thought we might have seen the last of each other ages ago. You haven't aged a day."

I hastily bowed, remembering my manners. "Apologies, ma'am. I hadn't expected us to meet again either, however, I must admit, you have aged far less than I."

She rolled her eyes, giving the stunned Doctor a look. "Always the charmer, this one. You'd best watch out for him." She returned to the matter at hand though, knocking the Doctor out of his stunned look. "But you, Doctor. Show me these credentials."

He handed her the psychic paper and continued to look at me, though I ignored him.

"Why didn't you say so immediately? It states clearly here that you have been appointed by the Lord Provost as my Protector. You as well, Mister Hemming."

"Does it?" The Doctor questioned, looking surprised as he took it back and looked the paper over. "Yes, it does. Good. Good. Then, let me ask… Why is your Majesty traveling by road when there's a train all the way to Aberdeen?"

"A tree on the line." She replied and I immediately understood what that meant.

"An assassination attempt."

Rose looked shocked. "What? Seriously? There's people out to kill ya?"

The Queen sat up a bit straighter. "I'm quite used to staring down the barrel of a gun."

Her head guard strode over on his horse. "Sir Robert MacLeish lives but ten miles hence. We've sent word ahead. He'll shelter us for tonight, then we can reach Balmoral tomorrow."

"Mister Hemming, this Doctor, and his timorous beastie will come with us." The Queen said, gesturing my way. "Be sure to give Mister Hemming a set of arms. We've… worked together before. I trust him."

The man frowned at me, but nodded. "Yes, ma'am. We'd better get moving. It's almost nightfall."

The Queen actually looked excited at the prospect. "Indeed. And there are stories of wolves in these parts. Fanciful tales intended to scare the children. But good for the blood, I think. Drive on!"

The Doctor, Rose and I were sent to walk behind the carriage; myself having been given a small pistol and a saber.

"So you know her?" The Doctor questioned me. "Personally?"

I shrugged. "I was appointed as her personal guard about ten years before now. Prevented two of the assassination attempts on her life during that time."

"Out of how many?"

I gave him a serious look. "Two."

He smiled a bit, as though he'd just been messing with me, but Rose spoke up then.

"It's funny though, because you say assassination and you just think of Kennedy and stuff. Not her."

"1879? She's had, oh… Six attempts on her life?" The Doctor said and I hummed.

"Just about."

"And I'll tell you something else." He said, leaning down a bit to grin at Rose. "We just met Queen Victoria!"

"I know!" Rose said excitedly, the two acting like children.

"What a laugh!"

"She was just sitting there."

"Like a stamp."

"I want her to say 'we are not amused'. I bet you five quid I can make her say it."

I sighed as the Doctor made a face.

"Well, if I gambled on that, it'd be an abuse of my privileges of traveler in time."

"Ten quid?" She offered and he quickly agreed.

"Done."

Upon arriving, I felt a chill run up my spine. I got distracted by the feeling, sort of zoning out as I tried to figure out why it felt so familiar.

"Are you alright, Lux?"

I flinched when the Doctor lightly touched my shoulder, brushing him off as we headed inside.

"Fine. Just… thought I felt something."

He raised a brow at that, but said no more as we were led upstairs to see the observatory, as per the Queen's request. I was still distracted though, staring dazedly out the window until something the Queen said caught my attention.

"When Albert was told about your local wolf, he was transported."

 _Wolf…_

"So what's this wolf then?" The Doctor asked, ever curious, though I had a bad feeling about all of this.

"It's just a story." Sir Robert replied, nervously glancing at his servant for a second.

"Then tell it."

He hesitated. "It's said that—"

The same bald servant spoke, interrupting him. "Excuse me, sir. Perhaps her Majesty's party could retire to their rooms. It's almost dark."

"Of course. Yes, of course."

The Queen didn't seem bothered by the interruption. "And then supper. And could we find some clothes for Miss Tyler? I'm tired of nakedness."

"It's not amusing, is it?" Rose tried, and I caught the Queen rolling her eyes, obviously knowing what she was up to and ignoring it.

"Sir Robert, your wife must have left some clothes. See to it. We shall dine at seven, and talk some more of this wolf. After all, there is a full moon tonight."

Those words had me paling and I felt every ounce of blood drain from my face. _Oh, no. Of all the times for this stupid planet's moon season, why now?_

"Lux? Are you sure you're alright?" The Doctor asked me and I hesitated, before shaking my head; turning to the Queen, who had overheard.

"I-I'm very sorry, ma'am, but I'm not feeling well. Would it be alright if I retired for the night?"

She nodded. "Of course. Escort Miss Tyler to her room and I will see you in the morning. Do feel better, Mister Hemming."

I bowed and headed out with Rose, who looked to me in worry as the servant led us to a room.

"You look a bit pale." She commented. "Are you sick or something?"

"Or something…" I muttered, bobbing my head in a farewell as I was escorted to my room.

I felt someone come up behind me though and I quickly turned, seeing one of the servants preparing to hit me upside the head. I reacted in an instant, drawing my pistol and firing, only for the other servant to grab me from behind. I cursed and dropped the gun for my dagger, managing to get him in the arm, but when I turned to finish the job, a third man arrived and knocked me out.

* * *

"Your companions beg an apology, Doctor." A servant said, bringing in the wine for the evening. "Her clothing has somewhat delayed her and the other is under the weather."

"Oh, that's alright. Save them a wee bit of ham." He hummed, though he couldn't help but wonder what was going on.

There was definitely something suspicious with this house and Lux seemed fine before. She was a little dazed when she got here, but to suddenly get sick like that seemed odd. And Rose being delayed? When there was something interesting like this going on? That in and of itself was strange. And he was right to be suspicious, because Rose was currently sitting down in the cellar, locked up with the rest of the house's staff.

"Don't make a sound. They said if we scream or shout, then he will slaughter us."

"But he's in a cage. He's a prisoner. He's the same as us." Rose told the Lady of the house, though the words sounded hollow to her own ears.

"He's nothing like us. That creature is not mortal."

The young monk who had been sitting silently in the cage before them opened his eyes to reveal completely black orbs. Rose was hesitant but curious all the same. She spotted Lux stirring in the corner and hesitantly approached her as she awoke.

"Lux, you alright?"

She grunted, rubbing her head with the chains around her wrists rattling at the movement. "Stupid humans. What is it with you lot and—"

She suddenly cut herself off and Rose followed her gaze to the young monk in the cage, making her worry.

"Lux? Lux, is everything alright?"

* * *

"Lux?"

"Rose, you need to get out of here, _now_." I said, not even looking her way as my eyes remained locked onto the man before us.

"Why? Do you know him? Do you know what he is?"

"I know that he's dangerous and this is the _last_ place we want to be." I told her seriously, but she stood up and started to approach the man. "Rose!"

"Don't, child." One of the woman behind us said, but she ignored us both and spoke to him.

"Who are you?"

"Don't enrage him." A staff member said as I took a shaky breath and tried to work on getting out of the chains.

"Where are you from?" Rose asked him, making me wince. "You're not from Earth. What planet are you from?"

"Oh, intelligence." The man breathed out.

"Where were you born?" Rose tried again and I hoped the man was mad enough not to tell her.

"This body? Ten miles away. A weakling, heartsick boy, stolen away at night by the brethren for my cultivation. I carved out his soul and sat in his heart."

 _He's long gone._

"Alright, so the body's human. But what about you? The thing inside?" Rose asked and I silently cursed her humanistic curiosity.

"So far from home." The boy whined.

"If you want to get back home, we can help." Rose offered, but I groaned.

"Rose, he could care less."

"She's right." The man smirked, making me wince when Rose looked at me and questioned how he knew I was a woman. "Why would I leave this place? A world of industry, of workforce and warfare. I could turn it to such purpose."

"How would you do that?" Rose asked, thankfully not mentioning anything about the man possibly knowing me.

"I would migrate to the Holy Monarch."

"You mean Queen Victoria?"

"With one bite, I would pass into her blood, and then it begins. The Empire of the Wolf. Many questions." He lunged a bit and the others flinched back, whereas I glared and bared my teeth at him as he stared at Rose. "Look. Inside your eyes. You've seen it too."

"Seen what?"

"The Wolf. There is something of the Wolf about you." He said and I frowned, looking at Rose briefly and feeling a slight churning in my stomach at his words.

I'd noticed it too, but I thought it was just my imagination. He was right though. There was something odd about Rose. She didn't seem to know about it though, so I brushed it off as he turned to me.

"And oh, how long it's been, *****."

I snarled at him, ignoring Rose's gaze on us. "Don't call me by that name, *****. Not when you're this far gone."

He frowned, tilting his head. "Gone? I was not the one who left us."

"Neither was I. You were gone when I woke." I countered, Rose looking at me in worry.

"Lux, what's going on?"

"Rose, focus on escaping. Pull together on the chains and they should come loose from the stone." I said, a bit of bite in my tone.

"But Lux—"

"Rose!" I snapped, turning towards her angrily. "If you want to survive more than five minutes in here with him, then do as I said!"

She hesitated, but nodded and got the other staff members up and started pulling as the cellar doors were opened and moonlight flooded in.

"Moonlight." He breathed out, tugging off his cloak as I swallowed thickly and tried to hold back the tingle of madness in the back of my head.

"W-When was the last time you trained, *****?" I asked as he started to change.

"Trained?! The training weakens you! Why should I train when I can be so much more?!" He shouted and he shifted as I let out a wail of my own, clutching at my head as my blood began to boil.

"Lux? Lux, what's going on?!" Rose shouted as I ducked back into the shadows and out of her sight, though I could still feel the burn of the moonlight.

"Just pull!" I shouted, changing myself.

I roared and shouted through the pain, it having been much too long since the last time I changed, much less being able to train with my seals. And that made it all the more dangerous. The wolf beside me snarled as he examined his paws and turned his gaze towards Rose and the others. The cellar doors burst open and the Doctor rushed in as Rose glared at him.

"Where the hell have you been?!"

He turned towards the wolf though and grinned. "Oh, that's beautiful."

The wolf began to escape his cage though and he hurried to get out of there, just as he locked eyes with me. My head ached and my body burned, seals trying to keep my mentality in check, but it had been so long. The madness was creeping in and as he looked into my silver eyes, I snarled and roared at him, making to lunge until he slammed the door shut and left as the wolf behind me let out a long howl and I followed.

* * *

"It could be any form of light modulated species triggered by specific wavelengths. Did it say what it wanted?" The Doctor asked Rose as he unlocked her handcuffs with the sonic.

"The Queen, the Crown, the throne, you name it." She answered, looking around in confusion. "Doctor, where's Lux?"

He furrowed his brows. "Dunno. I thought she was with you."

"She _was_!" Rose said, looking around again to make sure she hadn't missed her. "She was in there with us a-and she was talking to it. Like she knew it or something. Spoke in a different language and everything. But she was chained separate from us. Doctor, is she… I mean, we didn't know her all that well, but…"

There was a bang and he turned towards the hall briefly, patting Rose with a sad look on his face.

"Let's hope not."

He made towards the hall then, looking down it and seeing two werewolves standing there. One, pitch black with silver markings traveling up its sides, shoulders and thighs. It looked much less feral than the other brown one, but the Doctor couldn't figure out what made it so different. Even in the cellar, it seemed… conscious—for lack of a better term. The other was wilder, untamed. And as that one snarled at him, he bolted back down the hall and grabbed Rose as the steward and his men open fired on the two beasts. They bolted back down the hallway and the Doctor spoke to the men.

"Alright, you men. We should retreat upstairs. Come with me."

"I'll not retreat." The steward said. "The battle's done. There's no creature on God's Earth that could survive such an assault."

"I'm telling you, come upstairs!" The Doctor shouted, knowing that these creatures _weren't_ from Earth, but the steward was adamant.

"And I'm telling you, sir, I will sleep well tonight with those things' hides upon my wall." The man stepped out into the all, looking pleased as he turned back. "They must have crawled away to die."

He was pulled up into the ceiling rafters and the Doctor quickly took Rose upstairs with Robert following as the men got devoured. He wasn't there to witness though, the silver marked wolf attacking the other one and chasing it off; gazing at the mangled corpses before heading off itself. The Doctor and others met up with the Queen, only to discover their exit blocked by the monks with guns. So they quickly found a different way to go as the wolves started to chase them up the stairs. The Queen's guard, Reynolds, shot at the wolves, making them retreat and vowed to hold them off as the rest escaped. Rose though, couldn't help but look back at him as everyone hid in the library.

Reynolds emptied his revolver into the beast closest to him and Rose stared with wide eyes as he took a step back and the werewolf went to devour him. Just as it was about to though, the other werewolf attacked it; grabbing it and throwing it away from Reynolds. Rose stared in shock as the black werewolf growled and snarled at the other one, staying between it and Reynolds. Rose couldn't figure out what was going on. For one thing, there had only been _one_ werewolf. She didn't remember there being a second one. And why was the black one seemingly protecting Reynolds? Weren't the two of them from the same race? The same planet even? None of this was making any sense and as the two werewolves attacked one another, Reynolds scurried back and pulled Rose with him into the library; surprising everyone already in there.

"Reynolds?" The Doctor looked between him and Rose as Robert shouted.

"Barricade the door!"

They did so, the Doctor pausing to listen for a moment.

"Wait a minute. Sh, sh, wait a minute." He said, a howl echoing through the room as he pressed his ear to the door. "It stopped."

There was some sniffing from the other side and a low growl, before what sounded like the beginnings of another fight. The Doctor furrowed his brows, listening at the gnashing and snarling of teeth, before there was a whimper and then silence.

"They're gone." He said, stepping away from the door.

It wasn't over yet though, footsteps coming from outside letting them know that at least one of the beasts was searching around for an entrance.

"Listen…" Rose said, turning on the spot to listen to it as the Doctor whispered to Robert.

"Is this the only door?"

"Yes…" He said, before his eyes widened. "No!"

The men rushed over and blocked the second door as well, going quiet to see if the wolves would try to get in. They didn't though. There was another growl and some snarling before the remaining one ran off and Rose stared in confusion.

"I don't understand. What's stopping them?"

"Something inside this room." The Doctor said, though equally as confused. "What is it? Why can't they get in?"

"I'll tell you what though." Rose said, approaching him with a small grin.

"What?"

"Werewolves."

"I know." He smiled back, hugging her before looking her over. "You alright?"

"I'm okay, yeah."

He frowned though. "Hold on. Reynolds. What happened? I thought you were going to hold them off. No offence, but how come you're back here?"

Reynolds shook his head. "I-I honestly don't know, sir. I was shooting at them and the one brown one lunged at me, but then the darker one threw it aside."

Rose nodded. "Yeah. It was like it was protecting him or something. The two of them started fightin' each other."

"That's odd." He mused, before Robert spoke up, looking exhausted.

"I'm sorry, Ma'am. It's all my fault. I should have sent you away. I tried to suggest something was wrong. I thought you might notice. Did you think there was nothing strange about my household staff?"

The Doctor shrugged. "Well, they were bald, athletic. Your wife's away. I just thought you were happy."

Rose smiled though, looking at the Queen. "I'll tell you what though, ma'am. I bet you're not amused now."

The Queen rounded on her angrily. "Do you think this is funny?"

Rose immediately stepped back, apologetic. "No, ma'am. I'm sorry."

"What, exactly, I pray tell me, someone, please. What exactly is that creature?"

"You'd call it a werewolf, but technically it's a more of a lupine wavelength haemovariform." The Doctor rattled off and she turned to him.

"And should I trust you, sir? You who change your voice so easily? What happened to your accent?"

"Oh, right. Sorry, that's…" He rubbed the back of his neck, having not even realized that he'd stopped using the Scottish one.

"I'll not have it. No, sir. Not you, not that thing, none of it. This is _not_ my world."

The room, while tense, went quiet for a while, before the Doctor noticed the carvings of mistletoe upon the doors. It wasn't long before he realized that the monks had trained the wolves to be allergic to the plant. And armed with the greatest arsenal the world could provide, the Doctor had everyone take a book from off the shelves and try to find a clue as to how exactly the monks came upon these wolves.

"Look at what your old dad found." He said, showing them a book on exactly what they were looking for. "Something fell to Earth."

"A spaceship?" Rose asked, though Robert looked over the book and shook his head.

"A shooting star. 'In the year of our Lord 1540, under the reign of King James the Fifth, an almighty fire did burn in the pit'. That's the Glen of Saint Catherine just by the monastery."

"But that's over three hundred years ago. What's it been waiting for?" Rose asked.

"Maybe just a single cell survived. Adapting slowly down the generations, it survived through the humans, host after host after host." The Doctor offered as a possible explanation.

"But why does it want the throne?"

"That's what it wants. It said so. The… The Empire of the Wolf."

The Doctor muttered. "Imagine it. The Victorian Age accelerated. Starships and missiles fueled by coal and driven by steam, leaving history devastated in its wake."

"Sir Robert." The Queen suddenly spoke up, standing from her place. "If I am to die here—"

"Don't say that, Your Majesty." He cut her off.

"I would destroy myself rather than let those _creatures_ infect me. But that's no matter. I ask only that you find some place of safekeeping for something far… older and more precious than myself."

"Hardly the time to worry about your valuables." The Doctor quipped.

"Thank you for your opinion, but there is _nothing_ more valuable than this." She reached into her purse and pulled out a large diamond, about the size of her palm.

"Is that the Koh-I-Noor?"

"Oh, yes. The greatest diamond in the world."

"Given to me as the spoils of war." The Queen explained as they came closer. "Perhaps its legend is now coming true. It is said that whoever owns it must surely die."

"Well, that's true of anything if you own it long enough. Can I?"

The Doctor reached out and the Queen handed it over, allowing him to observe it.

"That is so beautiful."

"How much is that worth?"

"They say the wages of the entire planet for a whole week." He told Rose.

"Good job my mum's not here. She'd be fighting the wolves off with her bare hands for that thing."

"And she'd win."

The two of them chuckled as Robert shifted uneasily.

"Where are the wolves? I don't trust this silence."

The Doctor though, was more curious about the diamond.

"Why do you travel with it?" The Doctor asked, curious.

"My annual pilgrimage. I'm taking it to Helier and Carew, the Royal Jewelers at Hazelhead. The stone needs re-cutting."

"Oh, but it's perfect."

"My late husband never thought so."

"Now, there's a fact. Prince Albert kept on having the Koh-I-Noor cut down. It used to be forty percent bigger than this. But he was never happy. Kept on cutting and cutting." Explained the Doctor as they all looked over the diamond some more.

"He always said… the shine was not quite right. But he died with it still unfinished."

"Unfinished…" The Doctor realized something then, and he tossed the diamond back to the Queen, who caught it; shocked. "Oh, yes. There's a lot of unfinished business in this house. His father's research, and your husband, ma'am, he came here and he sought the perfect diamond. Hold on, hold on. All these separate things, they're not separate at all, they're connected! Oh, my head, my head! What if this house, it's a trap for you. Is that right, ma'am?" He spouted quickly after messing up his hair and pacing a bit.

"Obviously."

"At least, that's what the wolves intended. _But_ , what if there's a trap inside the trap?"

"Explain yourself, Doctor."

"What if his father and your husband weren't just telling each other stories. They dared to imagine all this was true, and they planned against it, laying the real trap not for you but for the wolves."

Just then, some dust flitted down from the ceiling and he looked up to see the brown wolf up above them on the glass dome.

"That wolf there."

The glass began cracking and the group all quickly ran towards the barricaded doors.

"Out! Out! Out!" The Doctor shouted, all of them grabbing things from in front of the door and tossing them aside as the wolf fell down and landed on the desk.

Once outside, the Doctor closed the doors and they all hurried down the hall to get away from the beast.

"Get to the observatory!" He shouted from behind, before pulling ahead of everyone.

Rose was in the back though and with the wolf right behind her, she would have gotten attacked, if it weren't for the blur of black that slammed into the wolf. She stumbled back as the black and brown werewolves fought one another, before something splashed over them both. The brown one growled in complaint, swinging its head around before running off; the Doctor complimenting the Lady of the house who'd thrown the bucket of water on them.

"Good shot!"

The other wolf was still there though, bringing a hand up to wipe the water from its face as it sort of sneezed at the scent.

"B-But why isn't it working?" The Lady panicked, taking a step back as Robert held her and Reynolds drew his gun.

The Doctor though, was curious and held up a hand to stop him.

"Wait, wait, wait. Don't shoot it."

Reynolds looked at him in shock. "Are you mad?! It'll kill us!"

"Rose is still over there. If you startle it, it could attack." He said, hesitantly stepping closer as the werewolf sneezed loudly and pawed at its face once more. "And… I don't think it's the same as the other one."

Reynolds was hesitant, but couldn't help but agree to that much; keeping his gun aimed at the wolf, but not shooting it for now as the Doctor came up beside Rose and pushed her behind him slowly.

"Doctor, what are you doing?" She hissed at him, but he didn't turn his gaze from the werewolf before them.

"I just want to try something. See if I can get it to talk."

Rose wanted to pull him away, but she could tell he was determined and there would be no convincing him to do otherwise, so she begrudgingly let it go; though she wasn't about to leave his side. Giving one last final snort to get rid of the mistletoe, the wolf turned towards them; body stiff and prepared to make a dash for it if threatened. The Doctor, seeing the signs easily, held his hands up in surrender.

"It's alright. It's okay. We won't hurt you."

The wolf glanced at him before lifting its gaze to the revolver Reynolds was holding, making the Doctor wince.

"Unless you give us reason to, that is." He added on, hoping that that would satisfy the creature before him.

And it did. The werewolf simply turned away and glanced down the hall that the other had hurried through briefly, before turning back to the Doctor.

"You just… seem different than the other one. You've been helping us, haven't you?"

The werewolf remained stubbornly silent, turning only when the distant howl of the other werewolf echoed down the hall. Knowing he was running short of time, the Doctor tried to hurry things up.

"Please. Talk to me. Why are you different from the other one? Why are you helping us instead of helping him?"

The werewolf suddenly turned its head down the hall, ears perked, and speaking in deep, heavily accented English.

"You must go. He is coming."

Everyone looked a little stunned, but the Doctor pushed.

"Why are you different from him?"

The wolf glanced back at him briefly, eyes flicking back ahead of it as it responded.

"He has lost himself to the change and I have not quite yet reached that point."

"Yet?" The Doctor breathed out, but the wolf didn't respond, taking off down the hall with a snarl and Rose tugged the Doctor back as Robert spoke.

"The observatory is this way."

The Doctor hesitated, but followed after him and the others; making it to the observatory and frowning as he realized he'd need more time.

"No mistletoe in these doors because your father wanted the wolves to get inside. I just need time. Is there any way of barricading this?"

"Just do your work and I'll defend it." Robert said, still standing outside the doors.

The Doctor didn't get what he was implying. "If we could bind them shut with rope or something."

"I _said_ I'd find you time, sir. Now get inside." He repeated, the Doctor growing serious before finally speaking.

"Good man. But try not to fight the black one. I think it's trying to help us, believe it or not."

Robert hesitantly nodded and the Doctor closed the door, leaving Rose to stare at it in shock, before going over to the Queen with his hand out. "Your Majesty, the diamond."

"For what purpose?"

"The purpose it was designed for."

The door clicked as Robert locked it from the outside and the Queen handed the Doctor the diamond before he called to Rose.

"Rose."

She hurried over and he grabbed a rung of a large wheel; Reynolds drawing his revolver and aiming it at the door as he stood before the Queen.

"Lift it. Come on." The Doctor told Rose.

She grabbed a hold as he said, straining to push it.

"Is this the right time for stargazing?" Rose grunted.

"Yes, it is."

"And how come that werewolf knew English? It actually _spoke_ to us."

"Couldn't tell you. It may have been here long enough to have adapted and learned the language. That's easy enough, but… it said the other one 'lost himself to the change'." The Doctor said, grunting as he turned the wheel.

"But what does that mean?"

"I'm not sure. I have a theory though."

There was a shout and snarling and growling outside, before a yelp, and pounding on the door. The Queen held up a cross, praying for safety as Reynolds' hand started to shake slightly and the Doctor explained what he was trying to do with the telescope.

"It doesn't work as a telescope because that's not what it is. It's a light chamber. It magnifies the light rays like a weapon. We've just got to power it up."

"It won't work. There's no electricity!" Rose argued.

The Doctor gave her a look, trying to get her to catch on, and thankfully she did.

"Moonlight. But the wolves _need_ moonlight. They're made by moonlight."

"You're seventy percent water but you can still drown. Come on!"

They finally got it in the right position just as the door burst open and the brown werewolf burst through and lunged towards the Queen. Thankfully, the Doctor was quick on his feet and hurried over, sliding the diamond along the floor into the moon light, reflecting it onto the wolf. The breast roared and floated in the air, returning to the young man it was before, crucified by the moonlight.

"Make it brighter. Let me go." He begged, and the Doctor did just that, until the man disappeared with a howl.

The Queen though, seemed distracted by something on her wrist, making the Doctor a little concerned.

"Your Majesty? Did it bite you?"

"No, it's…it's a cut, that's all."

"If that thing bit you—"

"It was a splinter of wood when the door came apart. It's nothing."

"Let me see." The Doctor asked, reaching for her wrist, but she quickly hid it, making him even more suspicious than he already was.

"It is nothing."

He begrudgingly said nothing more on the subject, but turned as there was a scuffling just beyond the door; Reynolds raising his weapon.

"The other one is still here." He said, gun aimed at the doorway just as the tall black werewolf showed itself.

Blood dripped from a wound on its arm, matting its fur and making some of the silver markings a deep red shade instead, but what caught their attention was the man it was carrying.

"Sir Robert!" Reynold said, stepping forward threateningly and cocking his weapon, but the Doctor rushed in and quickly shoved it upward before he could shoot the wolf. "What are you doing?! That creature has Sir Robert!"

"If you would just give me a minute, I could show you it's not like the other one! It's been helping us this whole time!"

"It is fine, Doctor." The wolf said, gently laying Robert down, and surprising the Doctor that it knew who he was. "Near five hundred years, and I've learned that humans tend to hurt things they do not understand, and worry about consequences later. It is a fact I've grown to live with."

"No… No, that's not true." He argued, hating to see an apparently friendly creature think so poorly of such an amazing race. "They're not all like this. I swear."

The werewolf looked at him and something about those grey eyes struck him as familiar, though he couldn't tell what.

"I've only met one man who was different…" The wolf shook its large head, turning away and beginning to stalk off. "And even he changed in the end."

"They're different. Please. You have to believe me! Humans can be kind!" He shouted, making the beast stop and glance back over its shoulder at him.

"Five hundred years, Doctor. It will take a lot more than your word to make me change my opinion. So you best keep trying to convince me."

The werewolf turned the corner and Reynolds attempted to run after it, but found nothing; the Doctor sort of in a daze.

"Doctor?" Rose said, making him frown.

"'Keep trying'. Why did it say 'keep trying'? Why is it so sure we'll meet again? There's just… There's something about it… But what?"

* * *

Dawn couldn't come fast enough, and once Rose and the Doctor were—both—knighted and exiled in the same morning, they headed on back to the Tardis with heavy hearts. Sir Robert had ended up healthy enough. According to him, the black wolf had shoved him aside when the other one had attacked, and he hit his head on something and blacked out. They were more upset about Lux though, having not seen hide nor hair of her even after searching the whole of the Torchwood estate. They'd been chatting idly about how the Queen could have possibly gotten bit and transferred the werewolf gene onto the next generation, but upon spotting the Tardis and the figure leaning up against it, their mouths dropped open in shock.

"Lux?!"

The Doctor and Rose hurried forward, but the Doctor's expression immediately fell upon seeing her pale complexion and the blood that dripped down her arm from under her shirt.

"Lux! What happened?!" Rose asked, the Doctor having to grab Lux before she collapsed.

"Just… a bit of trouble… with the wolf."

That caught the Doctor's attention as he helped her into the Tardis.

"'Wolf'? Singular?"

She didn't say anything and he frowned, but went quiet himself as he brought her into the med-bay to look at her shoulder.

"I'm going to need you to take off your shirt." He said, realizing the wound was bigger than he thought.

"It's fine." She murmured, half-conscious, it seemed as she removed the article and held it in front of her chest so he could get a better look at her wound.

What surprised the Doctor though, was the silver tattoos that he'd not noticed before. They were so light that they were barely noticeable unless you looked at them just right, but he shook the thought off as he examined her wound. He winced at the amount of blood and grabbed a cloth to soak with alcohol.

"This is going to hurt a bit."

She nodded, not even speaking and he lightly dabbed at the wound, wincing himself as she stiffened and her breathing grew more ragged. Once he'd cleaned it up more though, he was stunned to see the wound.

"Lux, you were _bit_ by the wolf?"

"It's fine." She grumbled. "J-Just patch it up."

"It's not fine! You've probably been infected! Lux, this is serious!"

"I can't be infected!" She shouted, clutching at her wound with a hiss of pain as he frowned.

"That's impossible. There's only a relative few species who could…" He trailed off as the puzzle pieces suddenly clicked.

" _Your moon seasons are short and only come once a month, while ours last much longer and happen many more times."_

" _...and telling any human what I am has only caused me to end up in positions like that one."_

" _My ship crashed here nearly 500 years ago..."_

" _...there is a full moon tonight..."_

" _She was in there with us a-and she was talking to it. Like she knew it or something. Spoke in a different language and everything."_

" _...two werewolves standing there. One, pitch black with silver markings traveling up its sides, shoulders and thighs."_

" _In the year of our Lord 1540, under the reign of King James the Fifth, an almighty fire did burn in the pit."_

" _Five hundred years, Doctor. It will take a lot more than your word to make me change my opinion. So you best keep trying to convince me."_

"Lux… you…" He looked at her as she glared at him tiredly. " _You're_ a werewolf?"

"So what if I am?!" She snapped, baring her teeth in a threatening manner as she yanked back on her shirt; _without_ having her wound dressed first. "All you humans think the same thing! Even you! It's always 'monsters' this! 'Horrible beasts' that! Burn them at the stake! Hunt them down! Kill the wolf before it kills us! Rip it apart! Make it work for us! See how it works! Like we're some kind of heartless machines, but we're not! And none of you ever bother to see that, so I'm leaving before you get any ideas! I am _done_ with the human race!"

"Lux! Lux, wait!" The Doctor shouted, chasing after her as she stormed out and reaching for her, only for her to whip around with a low growl; making him freeze as he saw a hint of that beast hiding within her.

"Don't _touch_ me." She snarled, only to cringe and clutch at her head in pain.

The Doctor saw the seals on her skin darken for a moment and swallowed thickly as Lux's form seemed to _crack_ for a second.

"Lux. Lux, just stay calm. I-I think you're trying to shift again." He said, not really wanting an angry werewolf rampaging around the Tardis. "We must be close to a moon o-or you may have absorbed enough moonlight to shift without it for a bit. But you can't shift here. If you do—"

"What?" She growled, voice shifting as she faced him with a glare; silver eyes narrowing dangerously. "I'll _eat_ you?"

He could see the distrust in her eyes. How she could sense his fear of her and how he didn't trust her back. How cautious he was about her and her possible shifting. And it was hard for him _not_ to be fearful. Werewolves were very powerful beings and could be every bit as feral as any other wild animal. He knew she was different, but werewolves just had one of those presences that made every sense of you scream to run. To hide, because there was something dangerous standing right there. Right in front of you. No one wanted to die and werewolves seemed to give off the scent of death. And even a Time Lord would quake in his boots when face-to-face with a werewolf. Lux let out another cry of pain and the Doctor knew his time was up, being forced to step back as Lux's body shifted. It was strange to watch though, seeing the human shaped body crack and jerk into something that shouldn't be possible. And once the large wolf was completely formed, the Doctor was hesitant.

Was she going to be like the other one? Had that last nerve finally snapped? But as he looked, he felt his hearts ache for the creature before him. She was slightly hunched over—whether in pain or due to the height of the ceiling, he wasn't sure—and was leaning heavily against the wall with a large black, fur-covered hand. But she kept her face turned away from him as she panted, obviously exerting herself as her other arm hung limply at her side. She looked almost… defeated. Such an old creature who'd been through so much in the last five hundred years, that she had reached the point where it almost didn't matter to her anymore, what happened. She had been trapped so far from home for so long, knowing that there wouldn't ever be a way back and that every person she met could be an enemy. It would have driven anyone mad. It should have driven _her_ mad, but for so long she'd pushed herself to stick through it all in the hopes that… Well, he wasn't exactly sure what she'd been hoping for. But five hundred years of not finding it had obviously worn her down. And he could feel it radiating off of her. _So lonely, so scared, terrified of everyone and everything. Always running, fighting, struggling, but always drowning. Always hurting. And for what?... She had nothing left._

The Doctor hesitantly approached, reaching a hand out towards her only for her eyes to suddenly shift to him and a low growl to rumble deep in her throat as she snarled at him. And he stopped, but only momentarily. Because she wouldn't hurt him. He didn't know how he knew that, but he did. It was just a feeling in his gut. A chime in his head that said she was a friend despite the aggressiveness. Despite the shouting and the snarling. She was only scared. Frightened of being betrayed again. Of being hurt again. She was putting up these walls to protect herself in the only way she knew how. By scaring people off before they got too close. His hand touched her side making her stiffen under his fingers, but she didn't move as he lightly traced one of the silver designs marking her fur. He went to say something then, only for there to be a startled gasp and all eyes went to Rose; who stood not too far from them with fear evident in her eyes.

Immediately, the Doctor could sense the change in the room and he scrambled to stop Lux as she suddenly charged forward and pinned Rose to the wall with her sharp teeth mere inches from her.

"Lux! Lux! Stop! Don't hurt her!"

Lux growled menacingly as Rose whimpered, shaking in her hold, saying nothing as the Doctor tried to find a way out of this situation.

"Lux, please! Please don't hurt her!" He begged and Lux licked her lips threateningly.

"And how many times have they hurt me?" She snarled, voice dark. "How many times have humans poked and prodded and scarred me? With their knives and swords and needles and fire. Such _puny_ , fragile beings. One twist and they snap. But they gather like a plague and rip things apart. Anything _different_. They take it and tear it piece by piece until there's nothing left. We make it quick. One swipe, one sharp yank, one _bite_."

Lux opened her jaws, moving closer towards Rose as the Doctor grew more frantic.

"And I'm sorry!" He shouted. "I'm sorry they did that to you! I'm sorry you had to go through that, Lux, but please! You can't put the blame of a few bad humans on the entire species!"

Lux stopped and pulled back; slightly turning towards him. "A few? A _few_ human beings? I've been trapped on this rock for five hundred years!" She shouted. "Five hundred years of hoping they'd change! Hoping I'd find even _one_ human that wouldn't treat me like some monster, only to be disappointed every time! Every _single_ time! Hundreds and thousands of human beings and all of them did the same! And you want me to what?! Search for _another_ five hundred years?! Be tortured for another five hundred years because every human I end up finding is more of a monster than I am?! And why?! Because there might be one—one tiny little human that will swallow their fear, look me in the eye and say they don't care?! And what then?!" She yelled, shaking slightly. "A hundred years and they're gone and I have to start over! And that's if the other humans don't kill them first! Why should I trust that you won't do the same?!"

She spun around and threw Rose at him, panting heavily as she obviously struggled with everything.

"Because Rose and I are different! I understand—"

"Different? She only _looked_ at me and was afraid! Back at that house, you both ran and tried to save the humans from the wolf, never mind me! They shot at me! They attacked _me_! I was trying to help! I've only ever tried to help and all it's ever gotten me was this!" She said, but her voice cracked and that raging madness that had crept up on her when she attacked Rose had begun to fade from her eyes. "Everyone runs from the monster… but no one ever stops to think that maybe the monster's the one running. And maybe the monster's _done_ running."

"Lux… I'm… I'm sorry." The Doctor said, not sure what more he could do.

Lux scoffed, turning away. "Your apology isn't going to save me, Doctor… It's… much too late for that."

She took a step forward, only to stumble and fall; collapsing as she suddenly shifted back to her human form. The Doctor hurried forward, kneeling at her side and rolling her onto her back. He checked her pulse quickly and winced, scooping her up and hurrying back towards the med bay as Rose followed; confused.

"D-Doctor? What's going on? Lux was a werewolf?!"

"Not now, Rose!" The Doctor shouted back, leaving her in the hall as he made it back to the med bay and laid Lux down, muttering under his breath. "Werewolf, werewolf. What do I have for a _werewolf_?!"

A monitor swung around and smacked him upside the head, making him angry until he spotted the image on it and smacked himself in the forehead.

"Of course!"

He hurried out of the med bay and nearly bumped into Rose on the way out, her chasing after him as he ran to the console room.

"Doctor! What's going on?! Where are we going?!"

"The moon!" He shouted back, rushing around the controls and landing the ship with a grin before hurrying back to the med bay. "Alright, Lux. Allons-y!"

He hefted her back into his arms and made for the open blue doors, getting the woman out onto the surface of the moon and simply laying her down in the hopes that this plan of his would work. _Come on, come on. Don't need a whole lot, but just enough._ Lux shifted, breathing in deeply before letting out a sigh, her color returning to it's normal, healthy shade as the Doctor let out his own sigh of relief. He left her there for a bit longer and then scooped her up and brought her back into the Tardis to the med bay; Rose trailing behind him hesitantly.

"Doctor, can you explain what's going on? What happened earlier? Was that really…" She trailed off, glancing at Lux in concern as the Doctor's expression saddened and he turned to her.

"Yes. That was Lux. Apparently, we've overlooked something. Lux is… Lux is a werewolf."


	2. Chapter 2

_Trees past us swiftly, mixing with our fogged breath in the chilly autumn air as my brother and I ran through the forests._

" _You'll never catch me, brother!"_

" _Will too!" He chimed in return, our childish laughter echoing in the night as festival drums pounded nearby._

 _We weren't supposed to be out this late and were still too young to determine whether we'd be able to change or not, but it was the autumn festival and we couldn't miss out. Already, our little hearts were pounding alongside the melodious drums from a camp nearby and it felt like my blood was racing._

" _It's in our blood." My father used to say when I sat on his lap and traced my pudgy fingers over the simple silver seal around his wrist. "The moon and the drums and the forest and trees. All of them come together and sing the sounds of the wolves and the Gods, leaving us no choice but to try and join in with our howls."_

 _I howled as my brother and I ran, chuckling as he joined in only for him to suddenly stop. I howled again, not noticing until he didn't respond back and then I slowed to a stop and looked around._

" _Brother?" I called out, searching in the dark forest that only seemed to grow darker the more I looked. "Brother?!"_

 _I made to call his name, but I suddenly couldn't remember what it was. My breathing grew sharper as I frantically attempted to pick up any sound that would tell me my brother was nearby. Just hiding as a joke. Instead, there was a low growl. Feral and dark, making me turn to see a pair of sinister glowing yellow eyes watching me._

" _W-What do you want?" I asked, attempting to be brave, though my small fists quivered in fear._

 _A brown changed wolf stepped out, caramel eyes looking crazed and tinged with madness as he towered over my small form._

" _What do_ I _want? Isn't it what do_ you _want? Why don't you change, youngling?"_

" _I-I can't change."_

" _Sure you can." He purred, stalking closer. "You're just afraid to, aren't you? Afraid to change and lose yourself to the madness. You're afraid to become like me." He chuckled and I bristled._

" _N-No, I'm not. I've trained. I'm stronger than you. I can change if I want!"_

" _Then do it." He snapped at me, making me fall back as my little heart raced. "Change and face me!"_

 _A growl ripped its way from my throat and I stood as my body cracked and shifted, my black fur raised on its hackles, but already I could feel it. That tingle of madness edging closer, trying to take over._

" _What's wrong?" The other wolf hummed, circling me as I watched him warily and bared my teeth. "Five hundred years and this is all that's left of you? What happened to the soldier? My comrade? When did those cold silver eyes become so weak?"_

" _Shut up." I snarled threateningly. "You're the one who lost himself, *****."_

" _Me?" A laugh escaped him. "_ You're _the one staying with those human apes. You killed your own comrade protecting them. So which of us is truly the mad one?"_

 _I went to respond, but the wolf growled and launched himself towards me, grabbing my throat and slamming me to a tree as I grabbed his wrist and struggled to get him off._

" _Look what they've done to you." He muttered, his jaws right by my ear. "You_ let _them do this to you and you_ still _turned against me. Against your own people. A mad wolf is stronger than you."_

" _Shut_ up _!" I snapped, fighting him off and tackling him to the ground as we fought and struggled to get the upper hand._

 _I was finally able to pin him to a tree, but then I saw those blue eyes and I froze._

" _L-Locks?" The young human man muttered, fear evident in his eyes as he spoke one of my aliases. "Y-Y-You're… You're the monster…"_

" _No… No, I…" I choked on my words, but then I was grabbed and thrown aside; the Doctor standing there with Rose held back protectively behind him._

" _You let her go. You leave her alone! Stop this, Lux! Just stop it!"_

" _Doc—"_

" _Stay back. You stay away." He ordered with cold eyes, when I spotted a shadow creeping up behind them._

" _No! No, leave them alone!" I shouted, charging past them and tearing through the wolf that had been about to attack them, only to stop and see that it wasn't the brown wolf._

 _Red, grey and white fur stained with blood laid before me. The familiar fur of my brother and I felt the brown wolf come up behind me as I looked at my hands dripping with his blood._

" _Don't you see? You've already lost yourself to the change, ******."_

" _N-No… No, I didn't… I-I… No. No!"_

* * *

"No!" I shouted, snapping upright in an unfamiliar room as sweat slid down my neck and onto the collar of my shirt; my sharp panicked breaths echoing n the empty room alongside the beeping machinery.

I looked down at my quivering hands seeing my normal pale fingers. I hadn't changed. There was no blood. _It was just a dream._ I let out a shaky breath pulling both my hands through my hair and shivering as a chill went down my spine. I grimaced and reached over to my shoulder, feeling thick bandages under the loose shirt I'd been changed into and remembering what had happened and where I was.

" _I am_ done _with the human race!"_

" _Lux, just stay calm."_

" _Stop! Don't hurt her!"_

" _Rose and I are different!"_

" _Maybe the monster's done running."_

" _Lux… I'm… I'm sorry."_

I stared down at the sheets around my legs, feeling lost. A thick, heavy weight was settling on my shoulders and I suddenly felt the need to just lay back onto the bed and sleep in the hopes I'd dream of my home and magically end up there; never having to worry about this sort of mess again. It was impossible, I knew. I was stuck. I could never go back. And now that the Doctor and Rose knew what I was, what I was capable of, and just how close I was to the edge, there was no way they'd just let me go freely. _I need training._ A part of me hummed in the back of my mind. The part that said to still fight, that I needed to live, that I would find something worth living for and I would need to be sane in order to get to that point. The part that was the desperate soldier searching for orders, searching for a purpose. The other part said to shut down. To cut off everything and give into the madness. There'd be no point otherwise. The Doctor would leave me back on Earth, back with UNIT, and I would need to block everything out if I ended up there again. The question was, which side would win?

"Ah…"

I glanced up to see the Doctor enter with a small smile on his face, though it looked a bit forced.

"Glad to see you're awake. You scared us for a minute there."

I stared back blankly as he backtracked on his words.

"I meant with the whole passing out thing. I actually had to take you by the moon for a quick top-up or you might've actually died, you know." He commented, heading over and checking some of the devices I was hooked up to before steadily detaching me from them.

I closed my eyes, inhaling deeply before letting it out; feeling better than before thanks to the trip to the moon. _Not as filling as my home moon, but enough to get me through another month._

"Are you alright?" The Doctor asked then, making me open my eyes and glance at him as he looked at me with something akin to concern. "You're awfully quiet."

I watched him for a moment before looking away and answering. "I attacked you and your companion, as well as those people with the Queen. Why go through the effort of speaking? There is no apology I can give you. No excuse I can give that will dissuade you from dropping me back on Earth with that group you took me from. So why bother?"

"We're not going to drop you back on Earth." He said then, making my brows furrow as I turned back to see his smiling face. "And you don't need to apologize. I understand."

"You don't understand anything." I snipped shortly, a little annoyed when he continued to smile at me. "You know nothing about my species or how I spent my time here or on my home planet. You didn't even know what I was until I gave it away."

"Ah, but see? You said it yourself." He pointed out, looking smug. "You gave it away."

"I was of unsound mind from the blood-loss." I argued.

"You practically _told_ me what you were." He countered. "And I think, that if you were so willing to give it away to me, then there's some part of you that trusts us."

"I don't trust humans." I growled, getting steadily more annoyed at this man.

"Well, no, but we can work on that. You trust me though."

"No, I don't."

"But I'm not human." He pointed at himself and I scoffed.

"You might as well be."

"What? Because I'm pals with a live-in one?" He commented, tipping his head. "You've been living with humans for nearly five hundred years."

"And you've seen what they've done to me." I snapped, growling subtly at him. "I've been living on the outskirts of civilization for as long as I can, because I know what kind of creatures they are."

"No." He said sternly as I bristled at his commanding tone. "You know what they _can_ be, but I'll bet, you've seen what they _could_ be too. You've met someone who was, didn't you?"

I felt my heart ache as I remembered those friendly blue eyes and I looked away, giving the Doctor my answer.

"What happened to him, Lux?"

"He changed, just like the other humans." I grumbled. "It was an ambush."

"I'm sorry." He muttered, seeing that he crossed the lines by questioning my personal affairs. "But I'm not like that. _Rose_ isn't like that."

"Then why isn't she here?" I argued weakly.

"Well, while you were unconscious—for a few days, I might add—she got a call from her boyfriend about some suspicious on-goings at a school. I've been dropping by to check up on you every chance I get. She's got a job as the dinner lady though, so she's a tad more tied up than I am." He smiled softly. "She went off to fetch her boyfriend before we head out, but I talked to her and she's willing to let you stay with us. She was a bit nervous before, but once I explained things, she was more fine with it. There's just one thing I want to be sure of." He said, rambling a bit as he rubbed the back of his neck. "What you said before, about the other wolf. What did you mean? The whole 'losing himself to the change' bit? Cause I've thought it over and I've got a theory, but I thought getting more information from you about your species would be better than trying to look it up in the library. Your species was rather well known about keeping its secrets. Anything I might have been able to find would have been from stories and myths. And if I'm going to invade your privacy like that, well, I figured I should get it from your own mouth. When you're comfortable, of course!" He chuckled nervously. "No rush or anything. I'd just hate for something to happen to you and not have a clue how to help."

I scowled, feeling a small headache coming on as I tried to sort through the large chunk of information he threw at me and figure out what he was asking. "Do you _breathe_ when you speak?"

The Doctor looked surprised by the question and chuckled. "I try." He shrugged and I scoffed.

"Perhaps, I will… _share_ some of my culture with you if you do the same in return. However, I will keep many things to myself, as I suspect you will as well. If I am to be… stuck with you both for some time, as you're suggesting, then some semblance of trust must come between us. I will need to see it before I spread secrets about my species."

"Course. I wouldn't force you." He smiled, looking pleased that I'd practically agreed to join them. "Though I would like to know if you change like that on just a full moon or if there's other factors that could cause a change. Would hate for some of the… less desirable humans to be witness to that."

"Full moon will force a change." I responded easily. "As would being within the close vicinity of a moon. However, if feeling highly threatened and the need for change arises, it is possible to force oneself to change. It is dangerous though, if low on energy from the moon."

"Which is why you passed out this last time." He concluded, looking guilty, but I brushed it off and began to stand.

"Unfortunately, my body will be sore for a day or so after a change. A forced one, more so." I explained with a grimace as I stood and stretched my limbs carefully.

"That's to be expected." He nodded, making sure I was alright walking before holding the door open for me. "It's completely reshaping your body from one form to another and back."

"Hm." I hummed in response, standing alongside him as we walked through his ship slowly. "I wish for my clothes returned though."

"Oh! Right! This way then." He smiled turning and bounding off as I sighed and simply walked after him to the wardrobe.

He entered the large room and pulled open a drawer nearby before handing me my clothing which, to my surprise, was looking in better condition than I left it.

"There you go!" He chirped like an excited youngling. "Good as new, thanks to the Tardis. I'll have her lead you back to the console room once you're done and then I can explain what's been going on since Rose and I began investigating the school. See you in a bit."

He waved and left me on my own, making me sigh and wonder what exactly I'd gotten myself into by agreeing to stay with him and Rose. I looked down at my clothes, brushing a fond hand over the fabric. _Perhaps… I'm just tired of being on my own._

* * *

The Doctor hummed, checking up on the Tardis monitors and double checking that what he'd looked over in the med bay was correct and that Lux was healing up just fine. He was glad that she'd decided to stay with him and Rose for a while more. He felt terrible about everything that had happened to her up until now, even if he didn't have the slightest idea what it was. He knew what it was like though. He'd seen the dark side to human beings and knew how they saw aliens. What happened on Christmas day was proof of that, but those had been hostile aliens. Lux didn't appear to be one, though he'd been wrong before and she _did_ say she was a soldier. To him though, she just seemed tired, especially when he'd come in on her in the med bay. She had resigned herself to be thrown back on Earth for one mistake and he could see her shutting down and giving up. She no longer had a goal to fight for, a reason to try and get out there and live. And that killed him. He _needed_ to give her hope because he knew what it was like. She may not have lost her planet, but she could never go back and he'd been in that position before. He knew how much it hurt to never be able to see your own people—your own _planet_ —ever again. And after talking it over with Rose, she agreed. Lux needed help, companions, and who better than them?

He heard Lux coming then and lifted his gaze only to be mildly surprised by the figure who walked out. Lux looked far more comfortable in the clothes of her home planet. Her khaki harem pants were tucked into brown boots that went to mid-calf, and a deep red sash was tied around her waist. She wore a loose cream shirt with the few buttons undone at the top that was tucked in as well with a brown vest and a thick, rugged brown coat with a fur hood that was draped lazily over her shoulders; leaving her arms free of the sleeves. He couldn't believe how much a simple change of clothes made the woman look so confident, and he had to clear his throat as she headed down the stairs.

"You look nice."

She grunted in response, glancing at the blue doors behind him with a small frown. He didn't doubt that she wasn't pleased to head back out on Earth again, much less mingle with humans, but he hoped it would help that they were heading in after school hours.

"So, explain." She said and he smiled a bit.

 _Same old Lux._ He went on to explain what they're heard from Mickey and then what they'd discovered on their own while working undercover at the school before there was a knock on the Tardis door and Rose poked her head in.

"We ready then? I got Mickey." She spotted Lux then and managed a smile. "Glad you're feeling better, Lux. Did the Doctor let you know what was going on?"

Lux watched her for a moment, making the Doctor nervous as to how she'd react to the woman she'd attempted to harm the other day, but she brushed off Rose's own nervousness and nodded.

"Yes."

"That's good. Oh!" She tugged in Mickey and quickly introduced them. "Mickey, this is Lux. Lux, Mickey."

Mickey lifted a hand in greeting as the Doctor rubbed the back of his neck, hoping Rose hadn't mentioned anything about Lux to the man just yet. Doing so might have ruined what trust he was building with the woman, but as they headed to go out into the school, Rose smiled at Lux.

"I didn't tell him nothing. About you, if that's what you're wondering." She said, making Lux raise a brow in curiosity before moving past her with a grunt.

Rose looked over at the Doctor who gave her a reassuring smile in return, messing up her hair as they followed the woman.

"Oh, it's weird seeing school at night." Rose commented as they walked to the front of the school. "It just feels wrong. When I was a kid, I used to think all the teachers slept in school."

"All right, team. Oh, I hate people who say team. Um, gang. Um, comrades. Um, anyway. Um, Rose, go to the kitchen. Get a sample of that oil. Mickey, the new staff are all Maths teachers. Go and check out the Maths department. I'm going to look in Finch's office. Be back here in ten minutes. Lux, you're with me."

He bounded up the stairs with Lux following after him as they headed back towards where the Tardis was; in the direction of Finch's office as well.

"Finch is the… what do humans call it?" Lux tried, brows furrowed as they walked through the halls.

"Headmaster? Principal? Dean, even, in some areas." He supplied for her and she nodded, glancing out the window when they passed a beam of moonlight. "You alright then?"

"Yeah." She murmured, continuing on. "Cutting it close though. Moon's nearly full."

He glanced at the moon through the next window with a hum. "Right. I'll keep an eye on it. Hopefully, we won't be more than a day or two."

There was a screech then and the two stopped, listening to the shuffling.

"Any thoughts?" The Doctor asked once the noise quieted down.

"Sounded like wings. Don't know a whole lot of species with wings. Just the basics. Valdigian, Menoptera. You're the traveler. You tell me."

They headed off after the noise as the Doctor looked over at her.

"No school or nothing on your planet? Library? Things of that sort?"

"Not like Earth." She replied honestly, not seeing a real need to keep their education a secret. "The younglings who don't have the ability to change are taught at home by elders. The older ones learn knowledge of their family's trades. Most who can change are sent to become soldiers and train. We learn knowledge of a different type."

"Ah. My species are more knowledge-oriented. Teaching and learning right from the start."

"And what species is that?" She asked and he blinked.

"Did I never tell you?"

She scowled at him. "Would I be asking if you had?"

"Well, no. No, I suppose not."

There was more screeching and the Doctor frowned.

"Sorry. I'll tell you in a minute. We need to make sure the Tardis hasn't been found by whatever these things are."

"The…box?" She questioned, looking confused as to why it would need such protection.

"Believe it or not, but if that ship falls into the wrong hands, we could be in quite a bit of trouble."

"Because it's a time machine."

"Oh, she's much more than that." He murmured. "Come on."

* * *

I ran alongside the Doctor until he pulled me to a stop and shushed me quietly, tugging me behind him. I frowned, not wanting to be coddled, but did as he said as we heard a door close in front of us and a woman back out of the room where the Tardis was parked. She turned around, looking shocked, but the Doctor spoke to her quietly.

"Hello, Sarah Jane."

"It's you." She breathed out, myself glancing between the two and realizing that they knew each other. "Oh, Doctor. Oh my God, it's you." She smiled then. "You've regenerated."

I furrowed my brows at that, but was ignored as the Doctor and her spoke.

"Yeah. Half a dozen times since we last met."

"You look incredible."

"So do you."

She scoffed. "I got old. What are you doing here? And who's this? Your companion?"

"Ah! Right, well, yes. One of them, anyway. My newest one, actually. Just picked her up a few days ago. Lux, this is Sarah Jane Smith, an old companion of mine."

I nodded to the woman who smiled. "Lux Hemming."

"Well, it's very nice to meet you." She replied, turning back to the Doctor. "But really, Doctor. What are you doing here?"

"Well, UFO sighting, school gets record results. I couldn't resist. What about you?"

"The same." She answered, before growing solemn. "I thought you'd died. I waited for you and you didn't come back, and I thought you must have died."

I felt I was intruding on something now and snuck towards the door silently. I wasn't missed and I relaxed my tensed shoulders, rubbing at the injured one with a grimace. _This injury is going to cost me later, if I'm not careful._ I heard a scream then and perked up, just as the Doctor and Sarah Jane bolted out from the room and he grabbed my wrist.

"Come on then, Lux! You're no use lying about!"

I lifted my lip in annoyance, tugging my wrist from his grasp as Rose hurried up then.

"Did you hear that?" She asked, before spotting Sarah jane. "Who's she?"

"Rose, Sarah Jane. Sarah Jane, Rose." He introduced quickly.

"Hi, nice to meet you." She smiled, looking back at the Doctor. "You can tell you're getting older. Your assistants are getting younger."

"I'm not his assistant." Rose said bitterly and I could feel a fight brewing.

"No? I get you, tiger." Sarah Jane teased the Doctor as we hurried off again.

We caught up to Mickey, who'd been the one to scream, but my eyes feel onto the vacuum packed rats on the ground around him as he and the Doctor joked about his scream earlier.

"Nine, maybe ten years old. I'm seeing pigtails, frilly skirt."

"Doctor." I grumbled, making him look at me as I held up a rat. "Why are they keeping rats in the cupboard."

"Well, obviously they use them in Biology lessons." Sarah Jane replied, earning a scowl from Rose. "They dissect them. Or perhaps you two haven't reached that bit yet. How old are you?"

Rose went to snap at the woman, but I intervened, looking at her blankly.

"Nearly eight hundred."

Sarah Jane gaped for a second. "W-What?"

"Right!" The Doctor cut in, placing a hand on my shoulder that I shrugged off. "Anyway, moving on. Everything started when Mr. Finch arrived. We should go check his office."

He chucked a rat at Mickey and we headed back down the corridor we'd come from as Rose and Sarah Jane argued on either side of the Doctor. I was smart and wanted nothing to do with them, staying back with the quiet Mickey. I ignored the conversation between them, even when the Doctor joined in, walking past when Mickey teased the man and I grumbled under my breath.

" _Mates_." I scoffed, the Doctor hurrying after me.

"T-They're not my mates! I mean, they're my mates, but not my mate mates!" He complained, before we reached Finch's office and he pulled out his sonic to open the door. "Maybe those rats were food."

"They weren't frozen, so probably." I muttered under my breath as the Doctor pushed the door open.

"Food for what?" Rose asked, but upon looking into Finch's office, the answer was rather obvious.

"Rose, you know you used to think all the teachers slept in the school? Well, they do."

Large bat creatures hung from the ceiling lights and Mickey let out a disbelieving gasp as he and the others hurried out. I frowned though, taking my time alongside the Doctor, unsure what species they actually were. Mickey and Rose ran out of the school, but I trailed alongside the Doctor as he, Sarah Jane and I took our time.

"Those were teachers." Rose gasped out and the Doctor went off in a ramble.

"When Finch arrived, he brought with him seven new teachers, four dinner ladies and a nurse. Thirteen. Thirteen big bat people. Come on." He turned to head back into the school, but Mickey was adamantly against it.

"Come on? You've got to be kidding!"

"I need the Tardis. I've got to analyze that oil from the kitchen."

Sarah Jane stepped forward then, looking smug. "I might be able to help you there. I've got something to show you."

I followed them to her car, but sort of zoned out as I looked up at the large moon in the sky. _I'm not liking the size of that. I can't figure out moon seasons in this world as accurately as mine. I think we've got less time than I thought._

"Lux?"

I snapped my head back around, seeing the Doctor's furrowed brows watching me.

"You alright?"

The others turned to me in confusion, except Rose, who caught a glimpse of the moon and winced.

"Fine." I muttered, glancing back at the moon. "For perhaps another day."

He looked over at it briefly as well, but soon returned to petting and cooing at the robot dog in the boot of Sarah Jane's car.

"Ooh, what's the mean lady done to you, eh?"

"Look, no offence, but could you two just stop petting for a minute? Never mind the dog, we're busy." Rose snipped, but I swore I saw something flicker across the moon's image.

Unfortunately, I missed what it was exactly when the Doctor tugged me into the small, cramped vehicle.

* * *

The Doctor sat beside Sarah Jane, catching up after having missed out on each other's' lives for so long. Rose and Mickey were off at another table discussing how not-so-different the Doctor was from other guys, and Lux was sitting in a booth facing the window outside, bathing in the sliver of moonlight peaking in.

"I thought of you on Christmas Day." Sarah Jane mentioned as the Doctor repaired K9. "This Christmas just gone? Great big spaceship overhead. I thought, oh yeah, bet he's up there."

"Right on top of it, yeah." He smiled.

"And Rose?"

"She was there too."

"With Lux."

"Oh, no. We picked up Lux only a few days ago." The Doctor corrected.

"Is she…" Sarah Jane trailed off, watching the woman briefly as she closed her eyes and leaned her forehead on the glass. "She's alien as well, isn't she? She said she was nearly eight hundred. Is she a…"

"No, not a Time Lord." He answered, not needing to hear her finish. "I'd explain, but we're trying to build up this trust with her. She's been through a lot and has a distrust towards humans."

"Yeah, I can see that." Sarah Jane commented, growing solemn. "Did I do something wrong? Because you never came back for me. You just dumped me." She asked suddenly.

"I told you." The Doctor said patiently. "I was called back home and in those days, humans weren't allowed."

"I waited for you. I missed you."

"Oh, you didn't need me." The Doctor smiled, hoping to ease her troubled mind somewhat. "You were getting on with your life."

"You _were_ my life." She countered. "You know what the most difficult thing was? Coping with what happens next, or with what doesn't happen next. You took me to the furthest reaches of the galaxy, you showed me supernovas, intergalactic battles, and then you just dropped me back on Earth. How could anything compare to that?"

"All those things you saw… do you want me to apologize for that?" The Doctor accused and she shook her head.

"No, but we get a taste of that splendor and then we have to go back."

"Look at you. You're investigating. You found that school. You're doing what we always did." He pressed.

"You could have come back." She said bitterly and his smile dropped.

"I couldn't."

"Why not?" She asked, before realizing how unfair that was to him and instead bringing up something to distract them. "It wasn't Croydon, where you dropped me off. That wasn't Croydon."

"Where was it?" He questioned, curiously.

"Aberdeen."

He looked nervous. "Right. That's next to Croydon, isn't it?"

She smiled with a shake of her head and he smiled back, just before K9 sprang to life.

"Oh! Hey! Now we're in business."

"Master." K9 responded, voice a little shaky still.

"He recognizes me." The Doctor grinned as the dog wiggled its ears and the others came over.

"Affirmative."

"Rose, give me the oil."

She passed him the bottle, warning him. "I wouldn't touch it, though. That dinner lady got all scorched."

"I'm no dinner lady and I don't often say that." He replied, dipping his fingers in and smearing it on K9's probe. "Here we go. Come on, boy. Here we go."

"Oil. Ex-ex-ex-extract. Ana-ana-analyzing." The dog sputtered out and Mickey chuckled.

"Listen to him, man. That's some voice."

"Careful." Sarah Jane scolded him. "That's my dog."

"Confirmation of analysis. Substance is Krillitane Oil."

The Doctor and Lux both stiffened.

"They're Krillitanes."

"Is that bad?" Rose asked and Lux grumbled.

"They're annoying scavengers who attack other races and take aspects of those they defeat. Last I saw of them, they looked like reptiles with lion manes."

The Doctor nodded. "They're a composite race. Just like your culture is a mixture of traditions from all sorts of countries, people you've invaded or have been invaded by. You've got bits of Viking, bits of France, bits of whatever. The Krillitanes are the same. An amalgam of the races they've conquered. But they take physical aspects as well. They cherry pick the best bits from the people they destroy. That's why I didn't recognize them. The last time _I_ saw Krillitanes, they looked just like us except they had really long necks."

"What are they doing here?" Rose asked.

"It's the children. They're doing something to the children."

The group went outside and Mickey and Sarah Jane packed K9 into the boot of the car while the Doctor and Rose trailed behind arguing about companions. Lux had stopped outside the café and stayed far enough away from them to give them some privacy while soaking in the moonlight. There was a loud screech then and all eyes went up to where a Krillitane flew down and skimmed over them before flying off. The group knew that tomorrow had to be the day when they took care of the Krillitanes, if not for the risk to the children, then for the potential risk that Lux had of changing.

* * *

"Rose, Lux, and Sarah, you go to the Maths room. Crack open those computers. I need to see the hardware inside." The Doctor said as we walked towards the school among the hordes of children. "Here, you might need this."

He passed his sonic over to Sarah Jane and I caught sight of Rose having reached for it only to scowl. _Great. I'm stuck with his mates._ I mentally complained, understanding now why he was sending me with them. _He wants me to keep them from fighting. Like hell. I've seen what happened when someone comes between two mates and in my species, it's never pretty._

"Lux, you'll be alright until nightfall, yes?"

I glared at him for bringing it up in front of Sarah Jane and Mickey, but nodded, turning away. "Yes, though if the need arises, I should be able to force a change before then."

"Without ending up like before?"

"I would think I know my limits better than you." I countered. "But yes. It's close enough that I'll be fine, though reverting back will have to wait until morning."

"Gotcha. We'll use it as a final option then."

My frown deepened. "I'm not an 'it'." I grumbled under my breath, storming towards the school and missing the cringe the Doctor made.

 _Moron. He's just like all the others. Using my abilities for whatever suits his needs. It's not just a tap I can turn on and off. He's just damn lucky it's the night of the full moon and I have enough energy to change, or else it'd be dangerous. And I_ told _him forcing a change is worse than allowing it to happen. He obviously doesn't care about me at all._ An ache formed in my chest, but I quickly brushed it off as I entered the Maths department and waited for Rose and Sarah Jane to show up. Already though, I was in a foul mood. _Computers… I'm useless with computers. He definitely sent me here to keep those two in line._ I watched as Rose and Sarah Jane entered and began attempting to use the sonic on one of the desktops. I kept my distance from them both, simply watching them as Rose took the sonic from Sarah Jane who couldn't get it to work. Then, the complaining began.

"Rose, can I give you a bit of advice?" Sarah Jane started and I resisted letting out a sigh.

"I've got a feeling you're about to." Rose grumbled.

"I know how intense a relationship with the Doctor can be and I don't want you to feel I'm intruding."

"I don't feel threatened by you, if that's what you mean."

I sighed softly, laying my head on the desk I was at.

"Right. Good. Because I'm not interested in picking up where we left off." Sarah Jane replied, upsetting Rose.

"No? With the big sad eyes and the robot dog? What else were you doing last night?"

"I was just saying how hard it was adjusting to life back on Earth."

"The thing is, when you two met they'd only just get rid of rationing. No wonder all that space stuff was a bit too much for you."

I buried my face into my arms.

"I had no problem with space stuff. I saw things you wouldn't believe."

 _Here we go…_

"Try me." Rose challenged and off they went, spouting everything they'd seen.

"Mummies."

"I've met ghosts."

"Robots. Lots of robots."

"Slitheen, in Downing Street."

"Daleks!"

"Met the Emperor."

"Anti-matter monsters."

"Gas masked zombies."

"Real living dinosaurs."

"Real living werewolves."

I stiffened at that, lifting my eyes to glare at the moronic blonde, but she hardly noticed.

"The Loch Ness Monster!"

"Seriously?" Rose questioned in surprise, before she chuckled and Sarah Jane realized what they'd been doing. "Listen to us. It's like me and my mate Shireen. The only time we fell out was over a man, and we're arguing over the Doctor. With you, did he do that thing where he'd explain something at like, ninety miles per hour, and you'd go, what? and he'd look at you like you'd just dribbled on your shirt?"

Sarah Jane nodded as I looked between the two in confusion. "All the time. Does he still stroke bits of the Tardis?"

"Yeah! Yeah, he does. I'm like, 'do you two want to be alone?'"

They began laughing hysterically as I struggled to figure out what had happened and the Doctor came into the room.

"How's it going?" He asked, but they kept laughing, pointing at him. "What? Listen. I need to find out what's programmed inside these." He turned to me when they wouldn't stop. "What happened?"

"I honestly have no idea. They were fighting a minute ago."

"And you just watched?" He questioned and I scoffed.

"Like I'm going to get between two mates. I don't want to know how bad they are when compared to my species."

The Doctor winced before waving at Rose. "Go make sure no students come in here while I try to figure this out. Lux, help me."

I shook my head. "No way. I'm absolutely no good with computers. I'll set it on fire first."

"Right. Alien. Forgot." He muttered and I glanced at Sarah Jane, but she simply smiled.

 _So he told her I was alien, but she didn't so much as give me a glance when Rose mentioned werewolves before, so she doesn't know my species. Good to know_ something _can be kept a secret for more than a few minutes._ I mentally sighed, getting comfortable in my chair and I frowned over at the blacked out windows. _The moon's getting closer. I can feel it._

"I can't shift it." The Doctor complained then, making me glance his way to find him half covered in wires from the computer.

"I thought the sonic screwdriver could open anything!" Sarah Jane accused.

"Anything except a deadlock seal. There's got to be something inside here. What're they teaching those kids?"

I stood when the overhead projector began showing a green screen with symbols zooming across it. "Doctor, I don't think you need the computer anymore."

He looked up, dropping the computer bits he had and stepping forward with brows furrowed in confusion. "Some sort of code…" His expression fell then. "No. No, it can't be… The Skasis Paradigm. They're trying to crack the Skasis Paradigm."

"The Skasis what?" Sarah Jane questioned.

 _I have no clue either. My species weren't exactly interested in technology so much other than the basic weapons for wars and space travel._

"The God Maker. The universal theory. Crack that equation and you've got control of the building blocks of the universe. Time and space and matter, yours to control." The Doctor explained.

"What? And the kids are like a giant computer?" Rose offered and he nodded.

"Yes. And their learning power is being accelerated by the oil. That oil from the kitchens, it works as a, as a conducting agent. Makes the kids cleverer."

"But that oil's on the chips. I've been eating 'em." She muttered and the Doctor tested her really quick to find out that she was being affected by them.

I was more curious about something else though.

"Why kids? Why _human_ kids? There's nothing special about them."

"No. It's got to be children. The God Maker needs imagination to crack it. They're not just using the children's brains to break the code, they're using their souls."

 _Doesn't answer the 'why humans' bit, but alright._

"Let the lesson begin." A new voice responded and I turned to see a man in a suit walk in, who I assumed to be the Mr. Finch everyone was talking about. "Think of it, Doctor. With the Paradigm solved, reality becomes clay in our hands. We can shape the universe and improve it."

"Oh, yeah? The whole of creation with the face of Mr. Finch? Call me old fashioned, but I like things as they are." The Doctor quipped.

"You act like such a radical, and yet all you want to do is preserve the old order? Think of the changes that could be made if this power was used for good." Finch coerced and I frowned, seeing the psychological warfare the man was using easily.

"What?" The Doctor asked. "By someone like you?"

"No, someone like you. The Paradigm gives us power, but you could give us wisdom. Become a God at my side. Imagine what you could do. Think of the civilizations you could save. Perganon, Assinta. Your own people, Doctor, standing tall. The Time Lords reborn."

 _Time Lord? He's a Time Lord?_ I thought in shock, having heard about the Time Lords through rumors and old tales alone. _Dear Gods, what have I gotten myself into?_

"Doctor, don't listen to him." Sarah Jane encouraged and Finch turned to her.

"And you could be with him throughout eternity. Young, fresh, never wither, never age, never die. Their lives are so fleeting. So many goodbyes. How lonely you must be, Doctor. Join us."

"I could save everyone." The Doctor murmured and I was stunned to hear him actually considering it.

"Yes."

"I could stop the war."

I honestly could care less about the humans on this puny planet, but if what Finch said was true and the Doctor was a Time Lord, then I hardly wanted the stuff of legends to be tricked by some mere Krillitane.

"Doctor—"

"No." Sarah Jane cut me off and I closed my mouth reluctantly. "The universe has to move forward. Pain and loss, they define us as much as happiness or love. Whether it's a world, or a relationship, everything has its time. And everything ends."

The Doctor considered those words, before launching forward and throwing a chair through the projector screen.

"Out!" He ordered and we all rushed from the room as the screeching of Krillitanes began to start up.

We hurried downstairs and met up with Mickey and one of the students who wasn't under the control of the Krillitanes.

"What is going on?" Mickey questioned as Krillitanes rounded the corner and the group of us ran to the canteen.

We were trapped with a locked door at the end just as Finch entered the room and blocked off the other exits with the Krillitanes.

"Are they my teachers?" The young student asked and the Doctor nodded.

"Yeah. Sorry."

"We need the Doctor alive." Finch told his friends. "As for the others, you can feast."

"Oh, I'm _so_ tired of this." I complained, catching the Doctor's eyes before snarling.

"Lux, you—"

He didn't bother finishing as my body shifted and cracked and I shook out my fur with a low growl.

"Enough's enough."

* * *

The Doctor winced as Lux shifted into the large black wolf, glancing over at the shell-shocked student, Sarah Jane, and Mickey.

"S-She's…" Mickey stuttered out and Sarah Jane breathed out the rest.

"A werewolf…"

"Told ya." Rose murmured as Finch scowled and the Doctor grabbed her.

"Get back. Everyone, get back!" The Doctor called out, not wanting any possible casualties should Lux get out of hand.

The Krillitanes screeched and one flew at Lux, but she easily grabbed it and slammed it to the ground, turning to Finch with a snarl and bared teeth. He screeched in annoyance and the rest of the Krillitanes went for her, diving and attacking her alone while the Doctor shuffled everyone to the back door. Lux was easily handling herself, but it _was_ just her against a number of the bat creatures. It wasn't until a laser shot past her at one of the Krillitanes that the Doctor looked stunned.

"K9!" Sarah Jane called out.

"Suggest you engage running mode, mistress." The robot dog replied, assisting Lux in distracting the Krillitanes as the Doctor finally got the door open and pushed everyone through.

"Come on! Lux, you too! K9, hold them back!"

"Affirmative, master. Maximum defense mode!"

The dog took the lead, firing off more lasers at the Krillitanes as Lux spared it a brief glance and hurried after the others into a lab room. She huffed in annoyance as the Doctor sealed the doors behind her, while the others just sort of stared at Lux in shock. Once they were slightly more calm, the Doctor rubbed the back of his neck.

"Right then. Didn't think I'd have to do this, especially in this situation."

Lux snorted through her nose. "I've dealt with Krillitanes before. They're like annoying flies constantly buzzing in my ears. One acting so confidently in such few numbers was just asking for me to change." Her silver eyes shifted across the group. "I'm surprised I'm not having to drag an unconscious human around. Loss of consciousness is a common human defense. Though the male youngling seems to be getting there."

Sure enough, the student was a little pale and sweaty, and he shivered when Lux looked his way.

"But… why didn't you say something before?" Sarah Jane questioned her, and the cold eyes shifted her way.

"I despise humans for many reasons." Lux snipped shortly, an ear twitching back as the sound of distant screeches reached the room. "All of which have to do to what I am when I change. The only reason you're seeing me now is because I'm allowing you to. Any sign of threat from you, and you'd be a snapped twig on the ground."

" _Temper_." The Doctor chided and Lux scoffed, turning to him.

"Says you, _Time Lord_. Your species is well known for its temper." She quipped back, both ears turning back as the screeches grew louder. "This is for the best, however. It's not often enough that I have a chance to train while changed on this planet and assisting with those pests will be a pleasure."

"Train?" The Doctor questioned, and Lux gave him a look that said she'd discuss it later, before Sarah Jane took a step forward; making Lux stiffen slightly.

"Sorry, I know it might be intruding, but can I just say…" She hesitated and Lux watched her curiously and suspiciously as the woman raised a hand to reach out for her. "You are… You are just magnificent."

Lux looked amused, giving the Doctor a look. "You've infected these humans with your idiocy."

The Doctor started. "I-I have not!"

"Could I…" Sarah Jane gestured towards Lux. "Could I just touch you? Just for a minute."

"I'm not some dog you can just pet." Lux snorted. "However, if it will satisfy your human curiosity, I will allow it."

Sarah Jane reached out, looking surprised as she touched the fur on Lux's side and even Rose wandered over and touched the seals on her forearm. Mickey though, looked petrified alongside the young student and voiced his concerns.

"B-But you're a werewolf. Shouldn't you be—I don't know—rampaging or something? I mean all the stories are about you lot running amok and terrorizing towns. And it's still daytime! There's no full moon out."

Lux snorted. "You humans create myths of my species to appease your terror and fear of us. I've been stuck on this planet for five hundred years, so I can assure you, those are false accounts about myself."

"You're kidding." Rose muttered in surprise.

Lux sent her a look. "While I would be willing to appease you with more information, I do believe we have a more pressing matter on our hands. The Krillitanes are getting closer."

"It's the oil." The Doctor suddenly blurted out, having been thinking about the Krillitanes while they talked; thus gathering their attention. "Krillitane life forms can't handle the oil. That's it! They've changed their physiology so often, even their own oil is toxic to them. How much was there in the kitchens?"

Rose sort of stumbled over her words for a second. "Barrels of it."

Lux moved to the door then, leaning back against it as the Krillitanes rammed themselves against it to try and get in.

"Okay. We need to get to the kitchens. Mickey."

"What now, hold the coats?" He grumbled, not sounding pleased about his position in all of this.

"Get all the children unplugged and out of the school. Now then, bats, bats, bats. How do we fight bats?"

Lux raised a brow. "You wanted me changed and now you're not going to use me?"

"You're still injured from the later fight you had." The Doctor commented, giving her a stern look. "And you're not a tool. If there's an alternative, then I will do that first."

Her eyes narrowed, but she said nothing before spotting the student moving towards the fire alarm. Lux winced as the bells rang out, but she wasn't nearly as bothered by it as the Krillitanes, who screeched outside in pain. She headed out first, tossing aside Krillitanes to make a path for the rest, who hurried to the kitchens. K9 was slowly rolling after them, before Lux rolled her eyes and scooped him up. She placed him down once they were in the kitchen and the Doctor attempted to sonic the barrels of Krillitane oil.

"They've been deadlock sealed. Finch must have done that. I can't open them."

"The vats would not withstand a direct hit from my laser, but my batteries are failing." K9 offered and the Doctor sent him a sad look before nodding.

"Right. Everyone out the back door. K9, stay with me. Lux, go back to the Tardis if you can. A few people witnessing a werewolf is alright, but I doubt you want the whole lot of kids witnessing you. They'd have nightmares for weeks." He paused. "No offense."

"Please. I've done worse than give children night terrors." She grumbled, heading back out the way they came as the others bolted out the back door; leaving the Doctor with K9.

* * *

I huffed in annoyance, stretching out my limbs and attempting to get some sort of warm-up going. Other than with the Queen a few days ago, I hadn't been in this form in some time. _And the times I was…_

 _Chains clattered as pained howls echoed through the stone room. Men in white coats wrote down data as teeth gnashed and anger mixed with the coppery tang of blood._

I closed my eyes and breathed in deeply through my nose, letting out the breath and pushing away the memories as I opened my eyes reached for the Tardis door. The thing wouldn't budge though and I scowled, hitting the side of the box in frustration and begrudgingly leaning against the door with muttered complaints.

"Stupid Doctor. I'm a soldier, not some pesky mutt. I shouldn't have to hide in some box that won't even open." I grumbled, clicking my tongue before there was an explosion back the way I came from.

I frowned, easily smelling burnt flesh and flames from where I was, and the cheering of students outside. I glanced at the Tardis, before coming to a decision and I hurried down the hall back to the kitchen on all fours. The school was abandoned and upon entering the kitchen, I let out a sharp breath through my nose to clear some of the smoke in front of my face as I stood. Memories of wars long since passed drifted to my thoughts at the scent of the ash in the air, but my ears picked up something other than the crackling of wood and flames. I wandered deeper into the debris, ignoring the scent of some of my fur being singed by flames that were too close, and I spotted the dull shine of a red light nearby. I moved closer cautiously, eyeing the beam lying on top of where it was to make sure the building wouldn't collapse if I moved it, before I wrapped my claws around it and shifted it with my shoulder. Buried under the rubble was a rusted, dented and scorched K9.

 _The dog was left behind to do the dirty work, go figure._ I thought bitterly, shoving the beam aside and scooping up the sparking metal dog. A wrist grabbed my ankle then and I scowled down to see a dying Finch pinned and half-scorched. He was murmuring something about the Doctor, but I kicked his hand off me and crushed it underfoot; leaving without a second glance as he faded and crumbled into dust. I could hear sirens though and grimaced, not wanting to deal with _adult_ humans as much as I didn't want to venture out and get spotted by the younglings. So, I picked up my speed and returned to where the Tardis was, attempting to get in once more, but it was no use. I was stuck trying to hide my bulky frame behind it until the Doctor returned.

I huffed and sat down on the ground, placing K9 on my lap and straightening my back as I closed my eyes. _Breathe. I may not be able to do physical training, but mental training is just as important when it comes to maintaining the seals. And it's been lacking ever since that hint of madness a few days ago._ I started to meditate, losing track of time as I went about sorting those memories that plagued me more recently and settling my mind. I wasn't startled though, when I heard quick footsteps approaching, and I simply opened my eyes and stood with K9 in my arms. Upon catching the Doctor's scent as the one heading my way, I relaxed slightly and came out from behind the ship just as he entered the storeroom.

"Lux! What are you doing out here?"

I lifted my lip in a snarl. " _Someone_ didn't give me the key."

"Ah…" He began to look sheepish as he pulled out his own key and moved to the doors. "Right. I'll need to give you one then, but what's…" He spotted K9 in my arms and looked surprised. "K9. You saved K9."

I snorted, following him into the ship with the metal dog. "Hardly saved. 'Recovered' is a more accurate description."

"Well, you didn't have to." He commented, making me frown. "Not that K9's not important, but I'm surprised you went back to the kitchen."

"Smoke, burning flesh, explosion." I rattled off, setting the metal dog down as the Doctor sent the Tardis off somewhere. "Could have been you."

He turned to me in surprise until I continued.

"I'd be trapped here on this planet again if you went and got yourself killed. At least with you, I have some chance of leaving."

He smiled a bit at me for that, shaking his head but saying nothing as he went over and looked over K9 for damages. I watched him with narrowed eyes, wondering why he'd smiled like that.

"You want to leave?" He asked then and I frowned.

"Five hundred years of wars and struggling and pain. Why _wouldn't_ I want to leave?" I questioned back and he shook his head, working on K9 with his sonic.

"Not Earth. With me. Rose and I, traveling in the Tardis. Do you want to leave us?"

I furrowed my brows, looking down on the Time Lord who'd grown so human. "Perhaps…" I turned away though, finding a box of parts nearby under the console and starting to go through them carefully for what the Doctor might need. "Although, there are few planets where someone of my species would be welcome without some form of harassment."

He hummed as I passed him a part and he took it with a raised brow. "I thought you don't do technology."

I wrinkled my nose. "Please. Earth technology is ancient and useless. Ships, robots, mechanical work and weapons are what I know from my training."

He pointed his sonic at me. "You said that word again. 'Training.'"

I sighed, watching him put K9 back together other than the dog's outer metal paneling. "If you're speaking of what my species learns, there is no… _school_ or academy. As I said, younglings are taught by parents and guardians to follow the family trade, but once old enough to determine whether they can change or not, they either become soldiers or stay at home and in the shops."

"Bit rough, that. No artists or anything? Some occupation that's just… out there? Against the norm?"

I shrugged, sitting on the ground nearby him. "I wouldn't know. My brother, father and I are all capable of the change, though my father has since retired."

"Retirement. How's that work?" He questioned and I snorted.

"You don't seem the type to be interest in retirement plans, Doctor."

"No, but I do want to know more about you. Learning about your species is one way of doing that." He commented easily and again, I questioned why he was so intrigued in me.

"Where are the others?" I asked instead as he put back on K9's polished paneling with a fond smile.

"Waiting for us at a park nearby. Mickey wanted a date with Rose and Sarah Jane had something to do at home. I offered to fetch the Tardis. We're drifting in the Time Vortex right now, so we could spend hours here and show up in the park after an hour or two for them."

I gave him an annoyed look. "You wish to talk."

"Getting to know one another sounds better in my book." He smiled and I scoffed through my nose.

"Then why have you yet to tell me about yourself and the Time Lords?"

His smile faltered and he looked back at K9 solemnly. "You recognized the name when Finch said it. I assumed you knew about us… me. I _was_ going to tell you though."

I rolled my eyes. "You assume too much, Doctor. I know very little about Time Lords other than stories and myths. And as I informed Mickey, stories and myths about werewolves are farfetched. Why shouldn't the same be said for those about your species?"

He chuckled then, reaching out and patting my knee, making me frown in confusion. "I knew I liked you. You're rather clever yourself, aren't you?"

"I would not survive otherwise. Being a soldier is not only about fighting."

His smile fell again and I wondered what I'd said to upset him, until he nodded. "I know."

 _He was a soldier as well._ I realized, having wondered what it was about him that made me antsy. _He always took control so easily. Handing out orders like a general. Odd._

"So, retirement?" He teased, smiling a bit once more to ease the tenseness our conversation brought.

I went along with it. "As we grow older, gaining control over our change becomes more possible. My father always had great control and low change levels."

"Change levels?" The Doctor questioned and I hesitated, but nodded.

"The wolf you saw before lost himself to the change."

"You said that." The Doctor replied, turning away from K9 to face me in seriousness. "And you said you hadn't lost yourself _yet_. What does that mean?"

I looked at him with cold silver eyes, silently judging how worthy the man was of the information I could give him, and I glanced away.

"My species, upon reaching young adulthood, have the chance to change or not. Some cannot and are not born with it. Others are, but along with the change comes the madness."

The Doctor listened silently as I went on.

"Each youngling who can change has a different amount of this madness. I lied to Mickey when I said the myths about werewolves were all false. There are times when werewolves lose themselves to the change and they become the monsters so well spoken of in human history."

"But you said those were based off you."

I nodded, closing my eyes and remembering villages I'd raided during peacetimes between wars and after freeing myself from being captured. "My kind who have been given the ability to change by the Gods are to become soldiers for a reason. My father was lucky. He had little madness to plague him from the start and became able to control when he changed. He could even manage to stay in a humanoid form during the moon seasons and could change at will without much consequence. He is one of very few who retire." I opened my eyes and lifted a hand, staring down at the silver markings trailing up my arms. "I was not so lucky."

The Doctor looked confused, so I explained further.

"Upon becoming a soldier, we have an… initiation process to gauge the change levels. A coming of age ceremony, if you will." I said, attempting to explain in human terms and not my own tongue. "We are taken and locked in a room full of contained moonlight. We change and remain that way without being allowed to move more than the length of the room. We have to willingly give ourselves up to the madness and depending on how long we last, determines our change level. The amount of madness in us. Then we are trained and sealed."

"Sealed?"

I nodded, showing him the silver on my body. "Silver. It is one of the few things humans have discovered about us that is true. Pure silver works as a seal, but only the pure silver from my home planet. All other silver is contaminated and can not only kill us, but extended periods with large amounts makes us ill. The vehicle you found me in was lined with silver and the cuffs were made of it."

His expression softened. "I'm so sorry."

I waved him off. "It was those humans who did it. You are hardly to blame."

Again, he smiled and I pressed on, if only to ignore the strange effect his mood swings had on me.

"Silver though, is used to seal the madness and contain it within us. The amount of silver on a wolf shows the amount of madness it needs to contain."

His eyes widened at that, looking me over in concern.

"As I said, I was unlucky. My brother and father were not. My father had a simple, thin silver ring around his wrist and my brother a slightly thicker one on his ankle. The further from the chest and abdomen, the less madness."

"And the training is to help control it?" He asked and I nodded.

"We become soldiers for the training. Physical and mental training is mandatory for all those who can change. Without it, we lose ourselves to the change and run rampant, as you saw with…" I hesitated, almost saying the wolf's name. "…the other wolf you saw."

"And you said 'yet'. You said those myths were based off you."

"I have lost myself a few times, but have been able to return to the change. World War I and II assisted in that, but between wars—during peacetime—and after having been captured and contained for long amounts of time, I would lose myself. I was incapable of training. It was inevitable."

He hesitated before asking. "How long has it been for you now?"

My silver eyes slid to his brown ones. "Much too long. I nearly lost myself while with the other wolf in the cellar, but came to my senses after seeing you and Rose fleeing. Just before those men shot at us. I can withstand it for now, but the madness is constantly ringing in the back of my mind; looking for a crack in my armor." I muttered, looking away. "One moon season every thirty days is hardly enough time for training and with humans around, training is nearly impossible without threat."

"Well, it's a good thing you're here with me then, isn't it?" The Doctor grinned, standing and still only barely reaching my sitting height. "I'm sure the Tardis has a room you can train in peacefully. I just need to find it and you'll be set. And, if need be, we can drop by the moon more often for you. A quick trip in here and there won't be a problem. For now, though, we best get back to the others. Don't want to keep them waiting."

I listened silently as he went about prepping the ship to return, before speaking up over my shoulder at him. "You won't tell me about the Time Lords, will you?"

He stopped, the room going silent other than the soft humming of the ship. "I will. I promise I will, just… There was a war, you see. And they're gone. All of them. The planet, everything. I'm the last one and… it was recent. More recent than I want. So it's… Talking about it is…"

"It's the same for me." I murmured quietly. "My planet may not be gone, but I can never go back and… I hope they believe I'm dead. My family, they… I don't want them to hate me for thinking I committed treason…" I trailed off, before standing. "However, I have had five hundred years to deal with this. You have not, so I will be patient and wait. You'd be surprised how patient my species is, what with madness constantly at the edge of our thoughts."

"Thank you." The Doctor muttered, before the ship shuttered and we returned with K9 to meet up with the others.


	3. Chapter 3

The group of us walked out of the Tardis and onto a ship; Mickey looking around in awe at his first trip now that he'd joined us. The Doctor had been kind enough to give us a day off though, so I could return to my less furry self, and already I felt better after some training in a room on the Tardis. It was strange though, how taken with me the Doctor was, and a tad bit annoying. I'd often find him searching for me only to smile like a moron and ask how things were going. I was suspicious of his motives, but tolerated it for now. The gaping of the humans was far more annoying, after all.

"It's a spaceship. Brilliant! I got a spaceship on my first go."

"It looks kind of abandoned." Rose commented as I narrowed my eyes and looked around, not missing the scent of meat cooking. "Anyone on board?"

"Nah, nothing here." The Doctor said, before correcting himself, repeatedly. "Well, nothing dangerous. Well, not that dangerous… You know what? I'll just have a quick scan, in case there's anything dangerous."

I rolled my eyes at his childishness as he went to the main controls and Rose sauntered over, giving me a look when she did. _That's the other thing. Ever since Sarah Jane left, she's been looking at me like I'm going to take the Doctor from her. Hardly. He'll probably out live me and… he's too childish. I've yet to see him get serious about anything._ I glanced at his back for a moment, before he switched on the lights and opened the skylight, making me glance up at the stars.

"Fifty-first century. Diagmar Cluster. You're a long way from home, Mickey. Two and a half galaxies. Only half a galaxy for you though, Lux."

I frowned at him, not liking the reminder of how close I was from home and he winced, probably not having thought the comment through before he said it. Mickey and Rose went over to look out a window, whereas I leaned against the console as the Doctor picked up some wiring.

"Dear me, had some cowboys in here. Got a ton of repair work going on." He tossed down some parts and glanced at a monitor as I leaned over for a look as well. "Now that's odd. Look at that."

"Are those the warp engines?" I questioned. "Why are they going at maximum output when we're not even moving?"

"That's the question now, isn't it?" He agreed. "There's enough power running through this ship to punch a hole in the universe. So where's all the power going?"

"Where'd all the crew go?" Rose also joined in.

"Good question. No life readings on board."

"Well, we're in deep space. They didn't just nip out for a quick fag."

"Transport?" I questioned in return. "Escape pods? Teleports? Rescue ship? For all we know there's something on this ship that they ran away from."

"I check that already. No communication logs, escape pods are all accounted for, teleport is up and running, but no one's used it in donkey's years. I've even checked the smoking pods." He paused though, sniffing. "Can you smell that?"

"Yeah, someone's cooking." Rose hummed, though I was suspicious.

"Sunday roast, definitely." Mickey replied.

"But if there's no one on board, who's cooking?" I countered. "Bird in the engine?"

The Doctor shrugged. "No way to check. Systems are down."

 _The crew? No, but if the smell is them frying, then who's running the ship? And who's frying them?_ I shook the thought from my head as the Doctor opened another door and we went to look, only to see a crackling fire in a fireplace.

"Well, there's something you don't see in your average spaceship." The Doctor commented before bounding up to the fireplace and sonicking it as I followed. "Eighteenth century, French. Nice mantel. Not a hologram. It's not even a reproduction. This actually is an eighteenth century French fireplace. Double sided. There's another room through there."

I knelt down beside the Doctor as Rose piped up from a porthole.

"There can't be. That's the outer hull of the ship. Look."

The Doctor and I were more focused on the little girl in the fireplace.

"Hello." The Doctor said curiously as I frowned in confusion.

"Hello." She replied back, a distinct French accenting her words.

"What's your name?" The Doctor questioned.

"Reinette."

"Reinette. That's a lovely name. Can you tell me where you are at the moment, Reinette?"

"In my bedroom." She replied, looking confused.

"He meant where you live, youngling." I corrected and she glanced at me.

"Paris, of course."

"Paris, right!" The Doctor shook his head as though he'd simply forgotten.

"Messieurs, what are you doing in my fireplace?"

"Oh, it's just a routine… fire check." The Doctor lied, ignoring the fact that she had called me a male. "Can you tell me what year it is?"

"Of course I can." She said proudly as I glanced past her to the fancy room she was in. "1727."

"Right. Lovely. One of my favorites. August is a bit rubbish though. Stay indoors." The Doctor rattled as I wrinkled my nose at the year. "Okay, that's all for now. Thanks for your help. Hope you enjoy the rest of the fire. Night, night."

"Goodnight, Messieurs."

The lot of us stood—Rose and Mickey having joined us at some point.

"You said this was the fifty-first century." Mickey muttered.

"I also said this ship was generating enough power to punch a hole in the universe. I think we just found the hole. Must be a spatio-temporal hyperlink."

I raised a brow at the name as Mickey questioned it.

"What's that?"

"No idea. Just made it up. Didn't want to say magic door."

"And on the other side of the _magic door_ is France in 1727?" Rose asked.

"Well, she was speaking French. Right period French too."

"She was speaking English. I heard her." Mickey argued and I frowned.

"It was French."

Rose though, gave me a brief look before explaining to Mickey. "That's the Tardis. Translates for you."

I went over to the Doctor though, who was examining the fireplace. "The Tardis doesn't translate for me?"

"Nah. Doesn't have to, in this case. If you know the language fluently, she lets _you_ do the hard work. Gotcha!" He exclaimed then and I quickly grabbed the mantel as it swiveled around and we ended up in the bedroom of Reinette.

" _Doctor_." I grumbled, but he was more concerned with Reinette, who'd woken up when he went to the window.

"It's okay. Don't scream. It's me. It's the fireplace man. Look. We were talking just a moment ago. I was in your fireplace." The Doctor spouted out quickly, lighting a candle with his sonic.

"Monsieur, that was weeks ago. That was months." She argued, making me frown.

"Really? Oh, must be a loose connection. Need to get a man in." the Doctor said, knocking on the fireplace.

I sighed. "Doctor, what are we doing here?"

I was ignored again, Reinette having other questions.

"Who are you? And what are you doing here?"

The Doctor, however, was looking at the clock on the mantel.

"Okay, that's scary."

"What?" I asked, heading over and frowning. "It's just a clock."

"You're scared of a broken clock?" Reinette murmured, before I realized what was going on.

"Oh. The ticking."

"On top of things today, Lux." The Doctor commented, turning to Reinette. "And yeah. Just a bit scared. Just a little tiny bit, because—you see—if this clock's broken, and it's the only clock in the room, then what's that?" He said, going silent so she could hear the ticking. "Because you see, that's not a clock. You can tell by the resonance. Too big. Six feet, I'd say. The size of a man."

"What is it?" Reinette asked, looking frightened now as I slowly wandered the room, trying to find where the source was.

"Now, let's think. If you were a thing that ticked and you were hiding in someone's bedroom, first thing you do, break the clock. No one notices the sound of one clock ticking, but two? You might start to wonder if you're really alone."

"Doctor." I called out quietly and he looked at me as I gestured to the bed.

"Stay on the bed. Right in the middle. Don't put your hands or feet over the edge." He told Reinette as we knelt down to see something hiding underneath.

The Doctor went to sonic it, but whatever it was threw out an arm towards him, knocking him back as I stood in preparation, holding out a hand to Reinette when I spotted it behind her.

"Don't move and don't look behind you, youngling."

Her eyes widened as the Doctor stood beside me and told the masked thing to stay where it was. Then, for whatever reason, he went to look into Reinette's eyes.

"Doctor, I don't think now is the time." I pressed, but he shushed me.

"You've been scanning her brain. What? You've crossed two galaxies and thousands of years just to scan a child's brain? What could there be in a little girl's mind worth blowing a hole in the universe?" He snapped at the creature as I furrowed my brows.

"You're telepathic as well?"

He waved me off as Reinette began to look more frightened.

"I don't understand. It wants _me_?" She turned to the creature, hardly afraid. "You want _me_?"

"Not yet. You are incomplete." The creature answered robotically.

"A droid?" I murmured, though the Doctor frowned at what it had said.

"Incomplete? What's that mean, 'incomplete'?" He questioned, but the droid remained silent. "You can answer her, you can answer me. What do you mean, 'incomplete'?"

The Doctor lifted his sonic and the droid came out from behind the bed; my instincts telling me to move back and protect the youngling as the Doctor faced the droid; which lifted its arm to point a sharp blade him.

"Monsieur, be careful!" Reinette cried out, but the Doctor looked at me purposefully.

"Just a nightmare, Reinette. Don't worry about it. Everyone has nightmares." He said, dodging a strike from the droid. "Even monsters from under the bed have nightmares, don't you, monster?"

He dodged again and the blade from the droid got stuck in the mantel.

"What do monsters have nightmares about?" Reinette questioned hesitantly.

"Me!" The Doctor grinned, looking at me. "Keep an eye on her, Lux."

I nodded and he switched the fireplace around. Reinette turned to me then, looking worried.

"Will he be alright?"

I huffed. "He may act childish, but he knows what he's doing."

"Are you a fireplace man too?"

"More of a… guard dog." I replied, not liking the comparison, but trying to keep things simple. "He told me to watch over you, so I shall, so you should sleep, youngling."

"But the monster might come back."

I sat on the edge of the bed beside her. "Then I will wait with you to keep you safe."

She nodded and tucked herself back under the covers, growing quiet for only a moment.

"Can you tell me a story? To help me sleep?"

I raised a brow, but begrudgingly gave in. Human younglings were one of the few things I could tolerate on this planet. While easily frightened of my other self, there were a number who were more curious than anything. _The naïvety of human younglings is a strange thing._

"There was once a creature—a monster, if you will—who fell to the Earth and was trapped on its own, but it wasn't a bad monster. It just grew lonely…"

* * *

"Reinette?" The Doctor called out, looking around the room that had since changed since his last visit. "Lux? Just checking you're okay."

He spotted a harp nearby and plucked a few strings, before a throat was cleared and he looked up to meet the eyes of a young woman.

"Oh, hello. Uh, I was just looking for Reinette." He removed his glasses. "This is still her room, isn't it? I've been away. Not sure how long." He winced, muttering a last part to himself. "Probably shouldn't have left Lux behind…"

"Reinette! We're ready to go!" A woman's voice called from downstairs and the Doctor perked up when the woman before him answered her call.

"Go to the carriage, Mother! I will join you there." She then turned to the Doctor. "It is customary, I think, to have an imaginary friend only during one's childhood. You are to be congratulated on your persistence."

"Reinette." The Doctor realized then. "Well. Goodness, how you've grown."

"And you do not appear to have aged a single day. That is tremendously impolite of you and Lux." She scolded, approaching and looking him over curiously.

"Right, yes, sorry. Listen." He smiled hesitantly, fearing how Lux would react if this much time had passed. "Lovely to catch up, but better be off, eh? Don't want your mother finding you up here with a strange man, do we? And would you mind pointing Lux this way? I'm rather worried about how she'll be when we meet back up."

"Strange?" She repeated, ignoring the bit about Lux for now. "How could you be a stranger to me? I've know you since I was seven years old."

"Yeah, I suppose you have. I came the quick route." He chuckled before Reinette touched his face lightly.

"You seem to be flesh and blood, at any rate, but this is absurd. Reason tells me you cannot be real."

"Oh, you never want to listen to reason." He argued, a bit uncomfortable with how close she was. "Though, Lux was here. Shouldn't that be reason enough?"

A servant chimed in from downstairs.

"Mademoiselle! Your mother grows impatient."

"A moment!" She said back, not sounding pleased, before she turned to the Doctor. "So many questions, so little time."

She suddenly kissed him, pushing him up against the wall as the servant called out again.

"Mademoiselle Poisson!"

The Doctor pushed her off then, slightly confused as to why, but she took it in stride and hurried to gather her things before rushing to the door. She paused though, before leaving, looking at him from over her shoulder.

"And Lux vanished not long after I awoke all those years ago. I see her from time-to-time in the evenings, but she doesn't stay long. Being in her current state of dress, it isn't surprising, though I applaud her choice in men's wear."

Reinette hurried out then and the Doctor continued to gape as a servant hurried in.

"Poisson? Reinette Poisson? No! No, no, no, no, no way. Reinette Poisson? Later Madame Etoiles? Later still, mistress of Louis the Fifteenth, uncrowned Queen of France? Actress, artist, musician, dancer, courtesan, fantastic gardener!"

"Who the hell are you?!" The servant demanded, but the Doctor couldn't help the chuckle that escaped him as he went to turn the fireplace around.

"I'm the Doctor and I just snogged Madame de Pompadour. Ha, ha!"

* * *

I was ticked at the Doctor for leaving me in France. Years had passed since I had to slip away from Reinette, but I kept my eye on her, as instructed. I stuck around the mansion to ensure that none of the droids from before were hanging around, though I was forced to keep my searches to the evening hours with all the servants milling about during the day. I stayed on the grounds though, hiding out when the full moon rose and training mentally. I suspected a nearby farmer was cursing wolves for the few of his sheep he'd lost during those nights, but sustaining myself through the occasional stealing of food from the mansion could only get me so far. _That moronic Doctor could have left me_ something _to get through this if he was going to be so long._ Or, that's what I used to think. After a while, however, I questioned whether he'd come back for me at all, or if this had been his plan. To get rid of me before I caused trouble with the two humans on board his ship now.

It had been a number of years though, and I cursed the timing of the full moon; having fully changed upon preparing to do another search. With my senses amplified during the change, it would have been easier to search, but moving my bulk stealthily through the mansion was not efficient and if anyone saw me, I would surely be killed. I hadn't forgotten my years in France back in the sixteenth century. Werewolf hunting had been as bad as witch hunting in that time, all because of a slip up in my counting of the days leading to Earth's moon season. _Things have calmed down by this point, though in a few decades, it'll have started up again._ I hid behind a garden wall as a sentry passed, but my ears picked up a noise from Reinette's bedroom and as soon as the man had passed, I quickly moved closer. _That noise… That ticking._ I closed my eyes, focusing on the sound for a moment, before muttering a curse in my own tongue under my breath. _It would be today, wouldn't it?_

* * *

Reinette fixed her hair in the mirror, unknowing of the trio on the opposite side watching her, before she turned and spotted someone standing in the corner of her room.

"How long have you been standing there?" She questioned in shock. "Show yourself!"

It turned robotically and Reinette froze in fear at the droid, before turning to the window, which was opening. She paled several shades as a large black wolf pulled itself through and grabbed the droid's arm, twisting it easily and snapping it off. The Doctor hurried through the mirror then alongside Rose and Mickey; who were armed with fire extinguishers, only to discover they didn't need them.

"Hello, Reinette. Hasn't time flown?" The Doctor teased.

"Fireplace man." She gaped, before gesturing to the wolf and droid. "Well, do something!"

The Doctor glanced at her with a nervous smile, before turning back to the droid; who was locked in the wolf's grip.

"Good job there, Lux. Sorry about the wait."

The wolf glared at the Doctor, lifting its lip in a snarl as it spoke.

"Wait? I thought you'd left me here." She snapped. "I've been stuck living off nicked party snacks and the occasional sheep!"

"Well, if I'd known it's be a while, I wouldn't have left ya." He muttered, though Lux still didn't look pleased.

Reinette though, caught the name and looked over at the wolf in shock. "Lux?"

The wolf shifted its silver eyes to her, but was quick to look away as the Doctor approached the droid.

"Who are you?" He demanded from it. "Identify yourself."

It didn't respond, so he spoke to Reinette over his shoulder.

"Order it to answer me."

"Why should it listen to me?" Reinette questioned, voice tight as she tried to wrap her head around what was going on.

"I don't know. It did when you were a child. Let's see if you've still got it."

Reinette took a breath, then faced the droid sternly. "Answer his question. Answer any and all questions put to you."

"I am repair d-droid seven." It finally said, voice stuttering due to the damage Lux had done.

"What happened to the ship then?" The Doctor asked. "There was a lot of damage."

"Ion storm. Eighty-two percent systems failure."

"That ship hasn't moved in over a year. What's taken you so long?" The Doctor pressed.

"We did not have the parts."

"Always comes down to that, doesn't it?" Mickey piped in with a laugh. "The parts."

"What's happened to the crew? Where are they?"

"We did not have the parts." The droid repeated and, assuming it was just stuttering again, the Doctor pressed harder.

"There should have been over fifty people on your ship. Where did they go?"

"We did not have the parts."

The Doctor grew angry, wanting to ask it again, but Lux interrupted.

"Doctor, it's telling you. It used the crew. That's why the ship smelt like cooking. It wasn't Sunday roast, it was cooked flesh."

The group of humans looked a little sick at that and even the Doctor winced at Lux's bluntness, but he decided to ask something else.

"What are you doing here? You've opened up time windows. That takes colossal energy. Why come here? You could have gone to your repair yard. Instead you come to eighteenth century France? Why?"

"One m-more part is required." It announced, it's head jerking towards Reinette.

"Then why haven't you taken it?"

"She is incomplete."

The Doctor looked confused. "What? So that's the plan, then? Just keep opening up more and more time windows, scanning her brain, checking to see if she's done yet?"

"Why her?" Rose asked then, making the Doctor glance back. "You've got all of history to choose from, why specifically her?"

"We are the same." The droid answered, upsetting Reinette.

"We are not the same. We are in no sense the same."

"We are the same."

"Get out of here." Reinette snapped, overwhelmed. "Get out of here this instant!"

"Reinette, no!" The Doctor shouted, but it was too late.

The droid twisted it's arm around, slicing Lux across the snout and causing her to yelp and release the droid. Before she could grab it again, it had teleported away.

"It's back on the ship." The Doctor murmured, turning around. "Rose, take Mickey and Arthur. Get after it. Follow it. Don't approach it, just watch what it does."

"Arthur?" Rose questioned.

"Good name for a horse."

"No. You're not keeping the horse." She whined.

"I let you keep Mickey, now go! Go, go!"

He ushered them through the mirror and closed it, before turning to Reinette, only to spot her approaching Lux.

"Reinette, now hold on a minute." He said cautiously, unsure how long it had been since Lux trained what with her having been stuck back on Earth for so long.

Reinette, though, hardly looked worried and reached out for Lux as she growled lowly in her throat in annoyance and pawed at her snout.

"Are you alright?" Reinette asked and the Doctor moved closer in case he needed to pull her away. "You're… You're Lux, aren't you?"

Lux glanced over at Reinette, but made no move to attack her or respond to her question.

"You told me a story once." Reinette murmured softly, moving closer still. "About a monster trapped on Earth. A _good_ monster. A lonely monster."

The Doctor looked between the two curiously as they watched one another and Reinette placed a hand lightly on the end of Lux's nose.

"Was this what you were talking about?" She asked, looking at the cut before looking back into Lux's silver eyes. "This is why you couldn't stay, even after promising you'd look after me."

"And I have been." Lux replied finally. "Every night."

Reinette smiled a bit. "My own guard dog."

Lux winced slightly at that as Reinette chuckled.

"Or, guard wolf, as it were."

Lux lifted her head out of Reinette's hands, looking embarrassed before the Doctor cleared his throat.

"Well, that went better than I'd hoped."

Lux scoffed. "She's seen droids attack her and people come out of her fireplace and mirror since she was seven. A werewolf from the legends of old is hardly unbelievable at this point." Lux glanced at Reinette. "Though as you said, a warm welcome from a human is not expected while I'm changed."

"Right, well, Reinette." He turned to her, walking up to her as Lux kept an ear out for approaching servants and scooped up the broken droid arm to dispose of later. "You're going to have to trust me. I need to find out what they're looking for. There's only one way I can do that. It won't hurt a bit."

He lifted his fingers to her temples and they both closed their eyes as Lux watched silently.

"Fireplace man, you are inside my mind."

"Oh dear, Reinette. You've had some cowboys in here."

* * *

I only half listened as the Doctor used his telepathic abilities to find what the droids were searching for and even then, I had an unpleasant feeling to what I did hear. For someone who'd only appeared a few times, Reinette and the Doctor were rather intimate. I could have said the same for myself, with what happened earlier, but I could only see the youngling I was commanded to protect. The fact that she had grown wasn't surprising and things would have turned differently if she'd reacted to my change like most humans, but she seemed fond of me instead, so I chose to remain fond of her as well. There _were_ rare humans and I had only met one before, but I remained cautious of Reinette, knowing how easily human kindness could change.

"Such a lonely boy." Reinette said then, catching my attention. "Lonely then and lonelier now. How can you bear it?"

The Doctor pulled back and I stiffened, prepared to bolt for it should something have changed between our little group.

"How did you do that?"

"A door, once opened, can be stepped through in either direction." Reinette commented, looking up at him. "Oh, Doctor. My lonely Doctor and my lonely monster."

She turned to me, pulling the Doctor along with her as she approached.

"Can you do as he did? Do you walk minds as well?"

I fidgeted, glancing at the Doctor briefly as he watched me curiously.

"It is… not something my kind does often and we are much more limited in our telepathic capabilities than the Time Lords."

"Could you… Could you try with me? Just for a moment." Reinette asked and I hesitated.

It had been so long since I'd done telepathy. It was a tool my kind used mostly for mates, family, and our packs on missions. It was temporary, for the most part. The one who initiates it can cut it off at any time, but allowing it to happen was intimate. So the question was, was Reinette important enough to me? Did I trust her? There was the possibility of her going through my past as well, if I wasn't careful. And the things I've done were not things that humans were comfortable with. I had very nearly hit eight hundred years old at this point. I had experienced so much and tainting Reinette with that burden was not something I wanted. And yet, sharing my mind with this youngling was something I felt I needed. I needed a hint of that innocence. I needed something to show me that humans can be better. Why couldn't Reinette be the one to show me that?

I could feel the Doctor watching me through this thinking process too. He wanted to see what I could do, wanted to hear what Reinette found. I had yet to trust him with this information that I could even use telepathy, but would I be willing to connect with a human I'd met only once before? _Yes._ My mind supplied. _Because soon, she will be gone and as will you._ I closed my eyes and sighed, opening them and looking down at the young woman before me.

"Very well, but I will trust you to not dig deeper into my past that what I allow. I have done many things that I wouldn't wish anyone to view, much less a youngling such as you."

She smiled a little. "I am hardly a youngling anymore."

I snorted. "To me, you will always be a youngling."

I leaned down and pressed my forehead to hers, closing my eyes and opening my mind. It was strange, using telepathy after so long and with a human at that. She had very little protection to shield her thoughts and feelings compare to my species, only furthering my thoughts of her being a youngling. It was nice though, feeling her hands on my face and in my fur as I watched her through my mind's eye as a child growing up in eighteenth century France. The innocence made my chest ache and my mind long for my brother, who had always shared the same innocence with all the younglings I came across.

"You have a brother." Reinette murmured and I hummed back.

"Yes."

"But his image is blurred. You're forgetting him. Oh, monster, how can you bear forgetting such a cheerful child?"

Tears welled in my eyes as I let out a short whine, leaning my head against her hand slightly, having completely forgotten about the Doctor standing there watching us.

"You're so lonely, dear monster. You've been so alone for so long, and you fear us so much. You cannot give up. Oh, you just can't." Reinette begged me. "There's someone here for you now. Don't allow him to slip through your fingers. He can heal your wounds, just as a doctor should."

I pulled away slowly, opening my eyes and looking down at her as she smiled and kissed the end of my nose.

"You're very loyal, Lux, and you should cherish those who prove loyal to you as well. Show them that you can be kind as well. Because you _are_ the good monster."

I stood upright, lightly pulling my head from her hands and turning to the Doctor.

"I will stay to protect Reinette until the problem with the droids is finished." I declared and he nodded, before I glanced at Reinette. "Go dance, youngling. I believe I've overstayed my welcome indoors."

"Until our next meeting, Lux."

I glanced at her with a small smirk, taking my leave out the window once more and diving back into the trees on the grounds as I took in what I'd just done.

* * *

Reinette looked outside her window as the one across the way opened and Lux slipped into her room with a sigh. Reinette had taken her in and allowed her to stay inside during the night as the winters grew colder and the woman slimmer. Reinette gathered the heavy blanket from off her bed and brought it over to Lux, draping it over the chilled woman's shoulders. Lux didn't say much anymore. Reinette could tell she missed the Doctor, despite her protests when asked about the man. Reinette knew better though. While Lux hadn't shared her mind with her again after that first full moon, Reinette had a better understanding of the woman and that her standoffish nature was just her trying to protect herself from being hurt again. There was a kindness there though, buried deep. A kindness that burned in her when she was around the Doctor.

Reinette had been slightly disappointed when she'd discovered that. The woman had some feelings for the immortal man, though Reinette could tell she was more than hesitant and untrusting of him. She grew encouraged though, to help the woman see past that. The immortal man with a loyal wolf at his side seemed the perfect ending to her fairytale, despite her previous wants to be with the Doctor. They could help each other better than she could, after all. It was a shame the two were ignorant of the other.

Footsteps were heard then and Reinette turned to the door in concern as Lux sat upright; prepared to either leave via the open window should it be a servant, or attack should it have been another droid. Both were surprised though, when Rose stepped into the room; startling Reinette when she'd gone to check that the clock was still working.

"Madame de Pompadour. Please don't scream or anything. We haven't got a lot of time. I've come to warn you that they'll be here in five years." Rose said quickly, glancing at Lux briefly before moving to take a seat.

"Five years?" Reinette questioned.

"Some time after your thirty-seventh birthday. I… I can't give you an exact date. It's a bit random. But they're coming. It's going to happen. In a way, for us, it's already happening. I'm sorry, it's hard to explain. The Doctor does this better."

"Then be exact and I'll be attentive." Reinette encouraged bluntly.

"There isn't time."

"There are five years." Reinette argued, but Lux piped in.

"Reinette, they're working differently. When they pass through a passage like the fireplace, they end up on a ship. When they come back here, months, years, even decades have passed. They move quickly while we take the slow path."

Rose nodded hesitantly. "There's say, a vessel, a ship like Lux said. A sort of sky ship and it's full of… well, you. Different bits of your life in different rooms, all jumbled up." She grimaced when Reinette frowned. "I told you it was complicated. Sorry."

Reinette though, was quick on her feet. "There is a vessel in your world where the days of my life are pressed together like the chapters of a book, so that he may step from one to the other without increase of age while Lux and myself, weary travelers, must always take the slower path."

"He was right about you." Rose muttered as Lux snorted in amusement.

"The youngling is quick with logic and smart of mind."

Reinette smiled at Lux a bit, before bringing the conversation back on point.

"So, in five years, these creatures will return. What can be done?"

"The Doctor says keep them talking. They're kind of programmed to respond to you now. You won't be able to stop them, but you might be able to delay them a bit." Rose explained as Lux scratched the scar across her nose that had healed improperly.

"What about Lux?" Reinette asked, turning to her. "Could you not assist?"

Lux frowned, thinking. "No. I will be especially weak that night. It's a new moon. I will not be able to change and doing so in the middle of a crowded ballroom could prove disastrous. I could force a change, if things become dangerous, but it will only be a last resort."

Reinette nodded solemnly, before turning to Rose. "How long must I delay them?"

"Until the Doctor can get there."

"He's coming then?"

"He promises." Rose nodded.

"But he cannot make his promises in person?" Reinette complained, glancing briefly at Lux, who'd turned to look out the window with a frown.

"He'll be there when you need him. That's the way it's got to be."

"It's the way it's always been." Reinette said solemnly. "The horrible creatures and the Doctor. It seems you cannot have one without the other."

"Tell me about it." Rose chuckled a bit. "The thing is, you weren't supposed to have either. Those creatures are messing with history. None of this was ever supposed to happen to you."

"Rose." Lux snipped sharply, but the damage was already done.

"Supposed to happen?" Reinette questioned. "What does that mean? It happened, child, and I would not have it any other way. One may tolerate a world of demons for the sake of an angel and a loyal wolf."

Reinette got up and looked at the fireplace as Lux too, rose from her seat and replaced the bedspread, just as Mickey called out from somewhere down the hall

"Rose! Rose! Rose!"

Reinette, Lux and Rose hurried to the tapestry where Mickey had come out.

"The time window where she's thirty-seven. We found it. Right under our noses."

Mickey wasn't paying attention though, and Reinette slipped past the tapestry into the ship.

"No, you can't go in there, the Doctor will go mad—" Rose cut herself off as Reinette looked on the verge of tears.

"So, this is his world." She turned to Lux, who stood under the tapestry; holding it up to keep the two times connected. " _Your_ world."

There were screams in the distance then and she turned with a pale face.

"What was that?"

"The time window." Mickey explained. "The Doctor fixed an audio link."

"Those screams, is that my future?"

"Yeah… I'm sorry." Rose muttered, but Reinette stiffened her shoulders.

"Then I must take the slower path."

"And I will take it with you." Lux declared, earning a small smile from Reinette, before her own voice could be heard among the screams.

"Are you there? Can you hear me? I need you now. You promised. The clock on the mantel is broken. It is time."

"That is my voice." Reinette breathed out as Mickey tried to get Rose to move.

"Rose, come on. We've got to go. T-There a problem."

Rose hesitated, but Lux called out.

"Go, Rose. I'll look after her."

Rose nodded and they both hurried off as Lux gestured for Reinette to return through the tapestry. Once back in her room, Lux put the bedspread over _her_ shoulders as she sat down.

"Are you alright?"

"No." Reinette murmured. "I'm very afraid. But I know the Doctor is worth the monsters. Even _your_ monsters, Lux."

Lux watched her, confused, but Reinette covered her face to hide her tears and Lux sat on her bedside and allowed the frightened youngling to lean on her and sob.

* * *

Screams rang out as the droids invaded the ballroom, but I stuck to the shadows. I would stick out like a sore thumb if I wasn't careful, but the threat wasn't imminent yet. Panicking French aristocrats were not my concern, Reinette was.

"Could everyone just calm down, _please_?" Her voice rang out clear as day, as a few droids brought in her and King Louis XV.

 _Hm, brave youngling._ I thought in amusement, still going unnoticed with all the commotion. The droids weren't looking for me, after all, and with the humans in a panic about them, I could go unnoticed all night so long as I didn't reveal myself.

"Such a commotion. Such distressing noise. Kindly remember that this is Versailles. This is the Royal Court, and we are French." Reinette scolded the people, quieting them remarkably quick, before turning to the droids. "I have made a decision. And my decision is no, I shall not be going with you today. I have seen your world, and I have no desire to set foot there again."

"We do not require your feet." The droid said and two grabbed Reinette and pushed her down to her knees; three drawing their blades as I shifted closer.

 _Reinette is calm. She has a plan. I will not move yet, but I will remain close._

"You think I fear you, but I do not fear you even now. You are merely the nightmare of my childhood. The monster from under my bed. And if my nightmare can return to plague me, then rest assured, so will yours. Both, the fireplace man _and_ my loyal wolf."

I smirked at her courage, before hearing a horse's whinny. I furrowed my brows, but didn't have to look long for the source, before the Doctor on a white stallion burst from the mirror above yet another fireplace. Screams rang out once more, but the Doctor's arrival wasn't a surprise to some.

"Madame de Pompadour. You look younger every day." The Doctor smirked as the King frowned.

"What the hell is going on?"

"Oh." Reinette said then, gesturing to him. "This is my lover, the King of France."

"Yeah? Well, I'm the Lord of Time and I'm here to fix the clock." The Doctor grinned as I rolled my eyes and snuck to the head of the crowd behind Reinette.

He pulled the wig off one of the droids, which raised its blade to his throat, but he didn't care.

"Forget it. It's over. For you and for Lux and I." He turned to look back at the broken mirror and the solid wall behind it. "Talk about seven years' bad luck. Try three thousand."

I looked at the wall and understanding dawned on me, making me sigh; unwittingly gaining Reinette's attention. The droid though, panicked, jabbing at its teleport with no luck as the Doctor explained.

"The link with the ship is broken. No way back. You don't have the parts. How many ticks left in that clockwork heart, huh? A day? An hour? It's over. Accept that. I'm not winding you up."

The droids powered down, slumping over and stopping as I pushed the ones nearest to Reinette over and helped her up.

"Are you alright?" I asked and she nodded with a small smile.

"Loyal as ever."

I smirked at that before she turned to the Doctor, who headed over with his hands in his pockets.

"What's happened to them?"

"They've stopped. They have no purpose now." He hummed, before smiling at her. "Your birthday can resume, though."

It didn't take long for the French to return to their celebrations after that, myself slipping away and finding a window nearby. I was still slightly disappointed to find no moon in the evening sky, sighing quietly as I leaned against the frame. The Doctor soon joined me though, passing me a glass of wine.

"Sorry." He murmured, making me glance at him. "For getting you trapped here again."

I shrugged half-heartedly. "I've done it once, I can do it again. Reinette will keep me company for a while longer then… I'll find somewhere else."

"Still… sorry." He apologized again and he joined me in looking out at the stars, before Reinette graced us with her presence as well.

"You know all their names, don't you?" She questioned the Doctor. "I saw that in your mind. The name of every star."

"What's in a name?" The Doctor joked. "Names are just titles. Titles don't tell you anything."

"Like the Doctor." Reinette smiled, leaning past him to glance at me. "And Lux."

"Like Madame de Pompadour." The Doctor countered, making her chuckle.

Reinette tuned her gaze back out the window though, curiously. "I have often wished to see those stars a little closer. Just as you have, I think."

"From time to time." The Doctor said, looking solemn.

"In saving me, you trapped yourself and Lux. Did you know that would happen?"

The Doctor hummed. "Mm, pretty much."

"Yet still you came."

"Yeah, I did, didn't I? Catch me doing that again."

Reinette though gave me a look. "And you, Lux. You could have gone back when he visited last, when Rose visited, yet you stayed."

I blinked slowly, looking at her and she smiled, already knowing why I'd done it. She'd asked me many a times before.

"There were many doors between my world and yours." She said to the Doctor then. "Can you not use one of the others?"

"When the mirror broke, the shock would have severed all the links with the ship. There'll be a few more broken mirrors and torn tapestries around here, I'm afraid, wherever there was a time window. I'll… I'll, um pay for any damage." The Doctor promised when reality hit. "Um, that's a thought, I'm going to need money. I was always a bit vague about money. Where do you get money?" He glanced at me. "Lux, how did you do it?"

"Amateur." I scoffed, earning a nervous chuckle from him as Reinette looked up at us softly.

"So, here you are, my lonely angel. Stuck on the slow path with me and my loyal wolf."

"Yup, the slow path. Here's to the slow path." The Doctor smiled, toasting, but Reinette looked sad and I frowned.

"Reinette?"

"It's a pity." She murmured. "I think I would've enjoyed the slow path."

"Well, I'm not going anywhere." The Doctor said, but she smiled a little.

"Oh, aren't you? Take my hand."

She pulled the Doctor along as I followed and we ended up in her bedroom as she gestured to the fireplace.

"It's not a copy. It's the original. I had it moved here and was exact in every detail."

"The fireplace." The Doctor muttered, looking shocked. "The fireplace from your bedroom. When did you do this?"

"Many years ago, in the hope that a door once opened, may someday open again. One never quite knows when one needs one's Doctor. It appears undamaged. Do you think it will still work?"

"You broke the bond with the ship when you moved it, which means it was offline when the mirror broke. That's what saved it." The Doctor said, before moving towards it. "But the link is basically physical, and it's still physically here. Which might just mean, if I'm lucky. If I'm very, very, very, very, very, very lucky." He tapped the mantel until he found just the right spot and grinned. "Ah, ha!"

"What?" Reinette asked, though she sounded heart-broken.

"Loose connection. Need to get a man in." He sonicked the mantel and slammed a fist on it, starting it up and standing on the corner. "Wish me luck. Lux, you coming?"

I hesitated, looking at Reinette who was looking devastated.

"Or, you can come with me when I come back."

I looked back at him and nodded, just before he smiled and pressed the button to flip the fireplace. He called out from there then, speaking to Reinette, who kneeled to see him.

"Madame de Pompadour! Still want to see those stars?"

"More than anything." Reinette smiled.

"Give me two minutes. Pack a bag."

"Am I going somewhere?"

"Go to the window. Pick a star, any star."

She smiled and got up, rushing to the window in excitement, though I paused. The connection between the two times was closed completely, and a dark thought in my head said that the Doctor _wouldn't_ be gone two minutes.

"Lux, come over here, would you?" Reinette called out and I joined her as she smiled at me. "Which one is yours?"

"Mine?"

She nodded. "Which is your star?"

I looked up and found it. "The small one. Right next to the window frame." I said sadly, pointing to it.

Reinette must have heard my tone, and place a hand on the crook of my elbow. "What is it? Do you not wish to return?"

"I cannot." I answered, glancing down at her. "You saw me forgetting my own brother's face, it is because I cannot go back. It is… a long story."

She paused, looking back at the fireplace and growing sad herself. "You said time moves differently between the doors from here to the ship… He will not be back for some time, will he?"

I didn't respond, but Reinette knew what that meant and leaned into my arm.

"Oh, my loyal wolf. Tell me, please. Tell me a story."

I sighed softly as we looked up through the window at the stars. "There was once a creature, a monster, but it wasn't a bad monster…"

* * *

The Doctor went through the fireplace again, eager to take Reinette out to see the stars, but when he saw the darkened bedroom, he worried that he may have just gotten it wrong.

"Reinette?" He called out as he walked down the hall and into another room, where the King stood solemnly by the window; staring down through the rain. "Ooh, hello." The Doctor greeted.

"You just missed her." King Louis replied, recognizing the Doctor despite the time that had gone by. "She'll be in Paris by six."

"Ah…"

King Louis turned to him then. "Good Lord. She was right. She said you never looked a day older. So many years since I saw you last, but not a day of it on your face." He went to a table then and pulled a letter from its drawer. "She spoke of you many times. Often wish you'd visit again. You know how women are."

He passed the letter over and then turned his eyes back to the window as a whip cracked a black hearse drove down the drive.

"There she goes. Leaving Versailles for the last time. Only forty-three when she died. Too young. Too young. Illness took her in the end. She always did work too hard." He glanced at the Doctor. "What does she say?"

The Doctor tucked the letter away though and the King nodded.

"Of course. Quite right."

A long howl pierced the halls then and the King closed his eyes in exasperation.

"Oh, that mournful howl." He groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I should have someone find the poor beast and put it down to end its misery. She spoke of it so fondly though, I wouldn't dare. Her loyal wolf. Loyal until the very end, and even now."

The Doctor turned away, heading back to the fireplace and passing through it and into the Tardis where Rose and Mickey waited.

"Why her?" Rose questioned him as he began to set the coordinates on the console. "Why did they think they could repair the ship with the head of Madame de Pompadour?"

"We'll probably never know." He said, keeping up appearances as best he could and keeping his gaze on the controls. "There was massive damage in the computer memory banks. It probably got confused. The Tardis can close down the time windows now the droids are gone. Should stop it causing any more trouble."

Rose noticed his mood though, looking worried. "Are you all right? Where's Lux?"

"I'm getting her now and… I'm always all right." He replied, though Mickey and Rose both knew he was lying.

"Come on, Rose. It's time you showed me around the rest of this place." Mickey said, knowing the man needed his time and as soon as they were gone, the Doctor pulled out Reinette's letter.

 _My dear Doctor. The path has never seemed more slow, and yet I fear I am nearing its end. Reason tells me that you and I are unlikely to meet again, but I think I shall not listen to reason. I have seen the world inside your head, and know that all things are possible. Hurry though, my dear. My days grow shorter now, and I am so very weak. Lux keeps me company, but even she can sense it, I'm sure. God speed, my lonely angel. Please come back for my lonely but loyal wolf._

He tucked the letter back into his coat, looking at the monitor where the fireplace sat, before flipping a switch and shutting off the connections for good. He sent the ship off then, landing in the gardens of Versailles not moments after he'd left. He stepped out into the rain, hearing the wolf howl once more and closing his eyes against the pain that the sound wrought through his hearts. He wasn't the only one hurting by Reinette's passing, he knew, and for Lux—a creature who hated humanity—losing a human she'd grown fond of would be so much harder. Especially since she stuck around her for so much longer. Got to know Reinette and share stories with her. They _both_ lived the slow path this time around due to the Doctor's mistake, and he owed it to them, to make it right.

He walked a little ways before finding Lux howling up at the sky mournfully with tears streaming down her black fur; the rain sticking it to her slim form that had once been fuller. This was his fault as well, he realized, but now wasn't the time to dwell on it. Lux stopped, taking in shuddering breaths as she opened her eyes and looked up at the dark clouds. The Doctor placed a hand on her arm, bringing her attention to him and making her bow her head as he led her back to the Tardis. Once inside, she simply stood there as the Doctor sent them into the vortex, knowing they all needed some time. But how long would it take to mend the hearts of two legendary beings who had seen far too much death, only to witness yet another?


	4. Chapter 4

He hadn't been able to do it. It had been almost a week now and she was wasting away before him, but nothing he was doing was working. Reinette's death had done more damage than expected and seeing how Lux went from sarcastic and blunt to completely silent and withdrawn, made his own hearts ache at how easily he was able to push Reinette aside with the other deaths he'd dealt with. He thought Lux would have been able to as well. She was nearly as old as he was and had undoubtedly seen her fair share of death, but he realized now how wrong he was. He realized now that she'd only lost a few people close to her, because she'd never let people get close in the first place. It made him question again, how she had lived so long by herself up until now. _He_ wouldn't have been able to stand it so, how had she?

He feared the worst for her now. He didn't know the last time she'd eaten or slept. She would wander the halls of the Tardis on occasion, but for the first few days she hadn't left the console room where she'd sat upon returning from France. It was worrisome. From what she had explained, it sounded as though she was mostly human, when not changed. He wasn't sure—especially now, with her not speaking—but he knew she wouldn't be able to last much longer if he didn't do something about it. That being said, it had taken him a while before being able to come to her aid to begin with.

The trio had ended up in another universe for a time and—despite his not wanting to leave her in the unworking Tardis at the time—when Rose and Mickey ran off, he was forced to leave her with a stern warning not to leave the Tardis. And she hadn't. She'd not moved the few days he was gone and she didn't say a word when only he and Rose returned and spent a day or so on Earth to help Rose get over the death of her mother in the other universe. He had tried then, to get her to open up a bit and brought her to the moon with a smile, but even that did nothing to push past the broken and blank mask that had been plastered onto her features since Reinette. When he and Rose went off on a small trip to see Elvis—which turned into a trip saving Earth from a face-eating television alien—only to return and find Lux in worse shape than before, the Doctor had finally had enough.

"Get up." He said sharply, eyes narrowed as he stared down at the woman sitting on the floor of the console room. "I said, get _up_."

She glanced up at him and slowly began to stand, struggling with even that as Rose looked nervously between the two.

"Doctor?"

"No, Rose." He stopped her. "Enough is enough."

Rose begrudgingly backed down and nodded, heading off to her room to give the two some privacy. Once Lux was on her feet, the Doctor stormed forward and grabbed her arm, pulling her to the Tardis doors.

"Come on."

She didn't protest or ask where they were, just allowed him to tug her along, which is what he'd expected. He doubted that would be the same once he got her outside, but this was his last resort. He wasn't going to let her break on him. Not without a fight. They walked out and he shut the doors behind them, locking them should Lux realize what was going on and try to rush back inside. Even now though, she was out of it long enough for him to pull her a good distance from his ship, before it clicked in her head where they were. She finally made a move and acted on her own, pulling back as her eyes widened in shock. It wasn't enough though, so the Doctor kept tugging her behind him until she final grew some more backbone and gave a firm yank backwards with a protest.

"N-No. No." She croaked out, voice hoarse from lack of use and the Doctor continued to pull on her wrist. "W-Why are we here? We can't be here."

He whipped around angrily, revealing in full force the frustration he had towards the woman at the moment. "And why not?! You want to waste away, you want to sit depressed until you die, then why not do it here?! If this is how things are going to be, then you can die here! Not on my ship, and not in front of me, because I won't have it, Lux! I won't!"

It hurt, how she reacted to his words. How the strong woman he'd known previously, who would have yelled and shouted and demanded to be brought back to the Tardis, seemed to crumble under his words. Seemed to quiver like a starved, scared dog with its tail between its legs.

"Please." She begged. "Please, take me back. I can't be here. I just can't."

He shook his head, standing his ground. "No. Not if you're going to continue doing what you have been. I understand being hurt, Lux. I understand your grieving, but look at this! Look at this, Lux!" He spread his arms out towards the forest around them. "This is what you've lost! Your _home_! Five hundred years, you've been away and you didn't pull this! You grieved, you _still_ grieve, but you conquered! You pushed past it and you fought to move forward! And now you're letting one woman turn you to ruin?!"

"Stop it." Lux breathed out, bowing her head and bringing her hand to it as she shook.

"She wouldn't want you to do this! Reinette wouldn't want you to drown yourself in sorrow for her!"

"Stop."

"What would your family think if they saw you like this?! How would your little brother see you?! Sniveling and broken all because of some Earth woman, when you pushed your own family's grief to the back of your—"

"Stop it!" She finally shouted, charging forward and tackling him to the ground with a strength he didn't believe her to have in this state. "Stop it! Stop it! _Stop it!_ "

"I won't!" He shouted in return, grabbing her shaking wrists connected to the pale fists gripping his shirt and coat. "Not until you snap out of this! Don't you see what you're doing to yourself?! You're better than this! I know you are!"

"You don't know anything about me!" She yelled in his face and he paused as wet tears dripped down her cheeks and onto his face. "You don't know what I've done, who I've hurt, who I've killed. You don't know what I've been through. You don't understand the slightest thing about me, so don't act like you do. Please. Please, just… Don't become like her. Don't ask me these things. Don't make me open up to you. I can't… I can't have this keep happening to me."

Understanding dawned on the Doctor, adding guilt to the ever-growing pit in his stomach.

"Something… Something else happened, didn't it?" He questioned softly as Lux struggled to rein in some of her emotions.

"No." She lied through grit teeth, getting up off him and wiping at her face as she turned away.

He sat up trying to think of what could have happened, when he remembered something. Her hesitation. Back when Madame de Pompadour asked about her own telepathy, she hesitated. Far too long to be considered normal and he'd been there to witness that moment. He'd been there to see a flicker of the raw emotions he was seeing now. Lux had _literally_ opened herself up to the woman, _bonded_ with her in a way that perhaps only her species could. A love had been shared between the two women, and for someone who had separated herself from others for so long, having that bond severed so easily… watching and _feeling_ someone waste away like that… He couldn't understand how painful that must have been for her. And this period of grieving; it wasn't just her throwing herself into a deep dark hole. It was her shutting down. It was her remembering everything she had had in those few moments with Madame de Pompadour and savoring them as she filed each and every one of them away. She simply wasn't like he was. She took her time and piece by piece, her shattered heart was gathering itself together and attempting to repair the damage.

It was struggling though; he could see that. _She_ was struggling. She wasn't used to having people around during her grieving process. She probably didn't even know how much time had passed. He silently wondered how long she'd been in this state when she'd first discovered her situation on Earth. How long had she wallowed in grief for her family, her comrades, her _home_ , when she first crash landed? For a moment, he had forgotten that she wasn't a human. She wasn't a Time Lord. Her species had its own way of dealing with deaths, and he had to respect that. A part of him couldn't though. She was slowly killing herself and it was painful for him to watch. That was why he had brought her here, to her home planet. He had brought her home, if only to try and get her to see that if she could push through the grief of this, then she could push through the grief of Madame de Pompadour.

"Lux, I may not understand exactly what you're going through, but I do understand what it's like to grieve over someone you care for." He said quietly, watching her as he slowly stood. "I know it hurts. I know it feels unbearable, but drowning in it for so long… Lux, just _look_ at yourself. This is the first time I've heard you speak in a week. You haven't eaten, you haven't slept. Hell, you look like you've lost three stone in the last few days! I just… I can't keep standing by and watch you ruin yourself like this."

She didn't move, didn't respond, and he sighed heavily as he pulled a hand through his hair.

"Either way, I need to go. I may have picked a spot somewhere out in the open, but our shouting will have attracted some attention. You can stay, or you're welcome to come with me, but if you do, just know that I can't have you continuing on the way you were." He paused, but still there was no reaction from her and he turned away. "I'll stay for another five minutes."

The Doctor walked away, pulling a hand through his hair tiredly. He felt bad for having to knock some sense into her by bringing her here, by digging up painful memories for her, but he couldn't see any other way. He had _tried_ other methods, but with no response. It was frustrating and already his decision ate at him, but it was up to her as to what to do next. Even if she returned to the Tardis, a part of him feared she'd ask to be dropped off elsewhere and leave him for good. He'd grown rather attached to her after only a few weeks together, but what could he do? It was her choice, not his. His affection towards her, not hers. So, he had to leave it be.

Once back inside the Tardis, he waited; counting down the seconds as he idly fiddled with the controls. As one minute turned to four, he started to worry that he had pushed her too far. He'd pushed her over that edge and she _wouldn't_ come back. And when those last fifteen seconds started, he let out a long sigh and began prepping the ship to leave. _Five seconds left…_ He closed his eyes and reached for the dematerialization lever, only to hear a small creak from the door. He looked over and relief flooded through him as Lux returned and softly closed the door behind her. She didn't look much better than before, but he sent the Tardis back off into the vortex and—once they were adrift once more—he turned to face her. She stood with her back leaning up against one of the coral pillars and her arms crossed over her chest as she stared at the doors.

He wanted to be strict with her, but the longer he looked at her, the guiltier he felt for taking her to her home planet like that and making her choose. She had come back, sure, but at what cost? He'd been trying to get her trust ever since he found her, but this put them back at ground zero. So, he turned away, not going to question her for now and just hope that she was out of her depressed state.

"I'm sorry."

He stopped what he was doing and turned to her in surprise, having not expected her to speak. She hadn't turned away from the doors, but her blue-grey eyes shifted to him briefly.

"For… upsetting you." She muttered. "My species doesn't… handle death well."

 _I can see that._ He thought, but kept that thought to himself. "It's alright. I know it's hard. I just… I felt that you…"

She grunted, knowing what he was trying to say, before she pushed off the coral pillar and moved towards the hall. "I'm hungry."

The Doctor couldn't help the small smile that flickered over his face as he went to follow after her.

"What are you in the mood for?"

"Lamb."

He snorted. "You and your lamb."

She short him a dirty look. "There are no such creatures on my planet and they are delicious."

He relaxed, glad that the mention of her planet hadn't brought up any ill will towards him after what he'd just done. They went ahead and started cooking—or the Doctor cooked, anyway—and he decided that there were some things he wanted to find out about what happened.

"Your telepathy. How does it work?" He asked curiously and Lux glanced up from placing her sixth lamb chop on her plate with a small frown.

"How… does it work?"

The Doctor nodded, taking two for himself and heading for the table. "Who do you typically use it with, what are the limits, things like that. Mine is rather different, I'm sure. It's contact telepathy, though there are some who can use it to hypnotize. It's not something constant either, and people can always force us out if they're strong enough." He saw her eyeing him suspiciously and tried to get her to relax. "I'm just curious, of course. No need to tell me if you're not comfortable sharing it with me."

She sat at the table though, turning her eyes to her plate as she stabbed her fork into one of the pieces of meat in a rather brutal fashion.

"I do not make it a habit to connect with others telepathically, though others in my species find joy in it." She informed him and he listened silently as he ate. "Typically, it is used with family, mates and companions. We use it for work as well, to communicate better with our packs." She paused, frowning. "Bunkmates? Squads?" She looked at him unhappily. "What do you call them? Your packs?"

The Doctor blinked, but smiled, rather amused at her struggle to translate her terms into something more relatable for him. "Comrades?"

"Mm." She hummed, accepting that answer. "It makes missions and planning easier. Communicating with others for perfect coordination. There is no delay this way. No reason to pull back and gather for discussion."

"Makes sense. Werewolves were mentioned in the myths of my people to be rather amazing warriors."

She seemed to puff up in pride at that. "Very. While secretive about our species, we have always been proud to show our strengths." Her blue-grey eyes shifted to him. "It is only partially contact based, however. The first connection with a packmate must involve touch, but after that, the connection is only broken by the person who made the link."

The Doctor hummed, curiously. "So distance isn't a problem?"

Her brows furrowed. "I am… not entirely certain. It hasn't been a problem before, however, it is difficult to get into contact with those bonded if they are too far away. I've heard stories that those strong with their change can keep communication over many acres and across oceans, if need be. The bond is not lost over far distances, but using it is difficult, I would believe." She paused then, thinking about something. "The wolf we met had been bonded with me."

The Doctor stared in surprise, having not known that. "So, you _did_ know him."

She nodded, stabbing another piece of meat. "He was my packmate for our mission. The one who vanished. Our bond was still there. However, because he was so far lost to the change, there was little use for it."

"So, the madness cuts it off?"

She shook her head. "No, the other just cannot be bothered to use it or listen to it. _Some_ thought capabilities are needed. Madness makes instinct run rampant over comprehensive thought."

The Doctor nodded in understanding. "But you said you don't use it often. What made you use it with Reinette?"

He winced when Lux paused in her eating, cursing his big fat mouth for bringing it up now that they were finally getting somewhere.

"She was…" Lux hesitated. "She was still a youngling. I thought…" Lux let out a heavy sigh and set down her fork to drag a hand over her face. "I _needed_ it. It had been so long since I'd shared that connection with anyone and… she was… bright. She had an innocence that I had long since forgotten was possible… I missed that innocence."

The Doctor understood _that_ more than anything. He hadn't had mental contact in ages and with all his people gone, he doubted that he'd have anything like it again. Picking up companions though, reminded him that there was something about humans worth noticing. Their 'innocence'—as Lux put it—was sobering, exciting. They noticed things that he had long since grown bored with and allowed him to look at that in a new light.

"How much did you share with her?" He asked cautiously, not wanting to push further than he should in this personal conversation. "Does your bonding share everything?"

She sighed, picking up her fork once more. "No. It shares only what I allow, however…" Lux looked up and the Doctor was slightly shocked to see a small teasing smile on her face. "Like you, she asks many questions."

The Doctor rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly as she went on.

"I shared more than I wished to, though. I kept the darker ones to myself, but she was persistent and dug up many memories I have tried to keep hidden." Lux glanced at him. "You saw the first instance, with my brother."

The Doctor nodded, still hesitant. "She said… you were forgetting him."

"Mm." She hummed, looking back at her plate and pushing around the last bit of lamb. "It has been a long time for me since I've seen him. I try to remember his face, but…" She shook her head, forcing the last piece of food down her throat and drinking her water quickly, before standing. "Come. Your human will get upset should we continue to sit around leaving her out."

The Doctor saw the end of the discussion clearly and nodded, getting up to go back to the console room with Lux.

"Sometimes…" Lux started, not looking at him as they walked down the hall. "Sometimes losing the good memories is worse than remembering the bad."

The Doctor stayed silent, hating how her words cut into him.

"I do not care for how you returned me to my planet though, Doctor." She said, snapping slightly and making him cringe. "Taunting me is not something I appreciate and you are lucky the patrols were not out in that area or we might have had a bigger problem on our hands other than my slip in emotions."

"R-Right…"

She sighed then, rolling her eyes as she stuffed her hands into her pockets. "I will agree not to bring it up again though, so long as you and your human do not mention my lapse of judgement."

"I take it, that that's about as close to a 'thank you' that I'm going to get from you then?" He teased and she scoffed through her nose.

"Do not push your luck, Time Lord."

The Doctor grinned though, glad that things were going back to normal and they could all head off to their next adventure happily. Or, as happy as one can get with where they ended up.

* * *

"I don't know what's wrong though. She's sort of queasy. Indigestion, like she didn't want to land." The Doctor mused as he landed the ship and I furrowed my brows as we walked out.

"She?"

"Hm? Didn't I mention? She's sentient." He smiled, patting the side of the blue box and I eyed the ship a little uncertainly.

Rose though, was more curious about other things and feigned seriousness. "Oh, if you think there's going to be trouble, we could always get back inside and go somewhere else."

There was a pause of silence before they both started laughing and I rolled my eyes.

"I think we've landed inside a cupboard." The Doctor mused upon looking around and calming his laughter. "Here we go."

He pushed open a door, the computer announcing it, and he looked around the rest of the area as I shivered.

"It's a moon base." I grumbled, eyeing the Doctor as though he'd planned this, but he spared me a cautious look.

"You'll be alright?"

I nodded. "It's not my moon and… there's something off about it. Like it's not a true moon anymore. It's tainted."

"Tainted?" The Doctor questioned curiously. "How do you mean?"

"Mm." I tried to think of a way to explain it. "Moons have… power to them. Their attachment to a planet, for instance. This one has some, but it's not… right. It feels wrong. Like biting into a sweet fruit only for it to taste like citrus." I hung my tongue out in disgust. "Taste's wrong."

Rose leaned over. "You can taste the moon?"

"Not… exactly. It's hard to explain in your terms."

"What about in yours?" She asked and I pinched my brows together in confusion s to why she'd want to know.

"*****." I said and her brows furrowed as she mouthed the word and attempted it, but I grimaced. "No. No, it's probably best not. It takes a lot of practice to learn our language. I don't believe humans are even capable."

"And Time Lords?" The Doctor chirped back, looking almost eager and I hesitated.

"I… do not know. Again, you were a myth to my species, just as mine was to yours. What you are capable of is unknown to me."

He smiled though, as if I had given him an answer more positive than he'd expected. "Well, doesn't mean we can't try. Now then, this place. You're definitely right, Lux. It's some sort of base. Moon base, sea base, space base. They build these things out of kits."

"Glad we're indoors. Sounds like a storm out there." Rose added on and I frowned up at the ceiling at the pounding the hull was taking.

 _How? We're in space. No atmosphere outside, means no storm. It doesn't make sense._

"Human design. You've got a thing about kits. This place was put together like a flat pack wardrobe, only bigger. And easier." The Doctor rambled on, opening another door and leading us into the next room, which had some tables and chairs set up. "Oh, it's a sanctuary base! Deep Space exploration. We've gone way out. And listen to that, underneath. Someone's drilling."

"'Welcome to hell'." Rose said then and the Doctor and I both looked at her curiously.

"Oh, it's not that bad." He argued.

"No, over there." Rose chuckled, gesturing to the wall where someone had written those very words and some other transcript.

"Hold on, what does that say?" The Doctor moved closer. "That's weird. It won't translate."

"But I thought the Tardis translated everything, writing as well. We should see English or, um…" She looked at me. "Whatever language you speak."

"Exactly." The Doctor answered her before I could speak. "If that's not working, then it means this writing is old. Very old. Impossibly old. We should find out who's in charge." He jumped up and moved to another door. "We've gone beyond the reach of the Tardis' knowledge. Not a good move. And if someone's lucky enough—"

"Doctor—" I tried to cut in, but we were both cut off by the aliens at the door.

"Oh! Right. Hello. Sorry. Um, I was just saying, uh, nice base." The Doctor smiled, taking a step back as the octopi-faced aliens took one forward; an orb in its hand lighting up as it spoke.

"We must feed."

"You've got to, what?" The Doctor questioned.

"We must feed." They repeated and I lightly tugged the Doctor back.

"I don't like this."

"Yeah." Rose agreed. "I think they mean us."

We tried to retreat back the way we came, but more appeared. Rose grabbed a chair and the Doctor pulled out his sonic, whereas I stood in front of them both and growled a threat low in my throat; prepared to change if I needed to. _There's some power of the moon here, so I won't have much—if any—side-effects and I should be able to switch forms fairly easily back and forth. It will take slightly more effort and a potentially minor amount of pain, but it's possible. I just don't feel any threat from them, despite what they're saying. It's odd. Everything about this place is odd._ Just then, one of the creatures shook the orb it carried and hit it a bit.

"We must feed… _you_ if you are hungry."

"Sorry?" The Doctor questioned, lowering his sonic as I relaxed my shoulders somewhat, though still cautious.

"We apologize. Electromagnetics have interfered with speech systems. Would you like some refreshment?"

"Uh…"

A door opened then and some of the aliens moved out of the way as a man moved towards us angrily with two others wielding guns; my hackles raising once more.

"What the hell… How did…" He looked us over and my eyes narrowed.

Was I overreacting? Yes, possibly, but I was still rather weak from my extended mourning period. I would be a bit tense until I got my strength back. The man lifted up his wrist, speaking into a comm.

"Captain, you're not going to believe this. We've got people. Out of nowhere. I mean, real people. I mean three living people, just standing here right in front of me."

" _Don't be stupid. That's impossible._ " Another man answered him via the comm.

"I suggest telling them that."

Rose looked just as confused as the rest of us.

"But you're a sort of space base. You must have visitors now and then. It can't be that impossible."

"You're telling me you don't know where you are?" The man questioned, looking surprised and the Doctor answered with a grin.

"No idea. More fun that way. Thought we'd landed on a moon base. Lux likes the moon."

I shot the Doctor a glare for that, but his smile didn't falter.

" _Stand by, everyone. Buckle down._ " A woman announced over the intercom. " _We have incoming, and it's a big one. Quake point five on its way._ "

I frowned, turning to the Doctor. "Quake?"

His eyes widened and he went to respond, but the man who'd rushed in was just as quickly rushing us out.

"Through here, now. Quickly, come on. Move!"

The ground seemed to roll and shake under our feet as we hurried as quickly as we could through the halls. I was feeling a bit more panicked than usual, having no idea what this 'quake' was other than dangerous and seemingly never-ending. We were brought to another room, serving as what appeared to be a control hub and the group of people in there gaped at us as well.

"Oh my God, you meant it." One of them breathed out.

"People! Look at that, real people!" A younger woman of the group grinned.

"That's us. Hooray." The Doctor cheered tersely.

"Yeah, definitely real." Rose smiled, doing introductions. "My name's Rose. Rose Tyler. And this is the Doctor and Lux."

Another young man stepped forward. "Come on, the oxygen must be offline. We're hallucinating. They can't be…" He got a good look at us. "No, they're real!"

"Come on, we're in the middle of an alert!" The first man chimed; the captain apparently. "Danny, strap up. The quake's coming in! Impact in thirty seconds! Sorry you three, whoever you are. Just hold on, tight."

"Hold on to what?" Rose asked.

"Anything. I don't care. Just hold on."

"Doctor." I muttered, but was seemingly unheard as he spoke to one of the others.

"What's this moon called, anyway?"

"Now, don't be stupid. It hasn't got a name. How could it have a name? And who said it was a moon?" She questioned, before seeing his clueless expression. "You really don't know, do you?"

"And impact!"

The whole station shook violently and I gripped the railing with a death grip as I curled up on the floor in a corner at the top of the stairs the Doctor, Rose and I were huddled on. The shaking stopped and the Doctor stood, but I didn't hear what he said over the pounding of my heart and my instincts screaming for me to run. Run _anywhere_ but where we were. Then, the shaking got even worse, to the point where equipment was catching fire and sparks flew. It soon stopped and the captain began calling out names as one man put out the fire, but I very nearly tore the Doctor's arm off when he placed a hand on my shoulder.

"Whoa there. You're alright, Lux. It's over." He then chimed to the others. "We're fine, thanks, fine. Yeah, don't worry about us."

I barely managed to relax my grip and hide my canines; feeling my fear alone almost making me instinctively change as I listened in to try and find out what that was.

"The surface caved in." The captain said. "I deflected it onto storage five through eight. We've lost them completely. Toby, go and check the rocket link."

Toby argued with him, but I ignored it, trying to shake off my fear as the Doctor gave me a look.

"You alright?"

"I do not like… _quakes_." I spat out and he looked surprised.

"You… You don't have quakes on your planet? It's when the tectonic plates move and shift. They make mountains and craters, oceans and such."

"Our mountains are old. My planet does not shift or quake." I grumbled, standing up shakily. "There is nothing even _close_ to this at my home. The last time I felt quakes like this was… at the crash."

"Oh… Oh, sorry. I didn't know. You'll be okay though?"

I nodded and he helped me settle down on the stairs as Toby passed us by.

"Never mind the earthquake, that's, that's one hell of a storm. What is that, a hurricane?" Rose asked.

"No atmosphere." I muttered and the younger woman across the way nodded.

"She's right. You'd need an atmosphere for a hurricane. There's no air out there. It's a complete vacuum."

"Then, what's shaking the roof?"

The older woman beside her again looked stunned. "You're not joking. You really don't know." She shook it off. "Well, introductions. FYI, as they said in the olden days. I'm Ida Scott, science officer. Zachary Cross Flane, acting Captain, sir. You've met Mister Jefferson, he's Head of Security. Danny Bartock, Ethics committee."

The younger male smiled. "Not as boring as it sounds."

"And that man who just left, that was Toby Zed, Archaeology, and this is Scooti Manista, Trainee maintenance. And this? This is home."

She pulled down a lever and the roof panels started to open up; Zach speaking as we stood.

"Brace yourselves. The sight of it sends some people mad."

A golden ring surrounded a pit of pure black hovered above us, and Rose pointed in shock.

"That's a black hole."

"That's impossible." The Doctor reciprocated.

"I did warn you." Zach muttered.

"We're standing under a black hole." The Doctor repeated.

"In orbit." Ida tagged on.

"But we can't be."

"You can see for yourself. We're in orbit."

"But we _can't_ be." He said again, more sternly and Ida explained a bit more.

"This lump of rock is suspended in perpetual geostationary orbit around that black hole without falling in. Discuss."

"And that's bad, yeah?" Rose asked.

"Bad doesn't cover it. A black hole's a dead star. It collapses in on itself, in and in and in until the matter's so dense and tight it starts to pull everything else in too. Nothing in the universe can escape it. Light, gravity, time. Everything just gets pulled inside and crushed." The Doctor rattled on as I listened silently, frowning up at the dark hole.

"So, they can't be in orbit. We should be pulled right in."

"We should be dead." He agreed.

"And yet, here we are. Beyond the laws of physics. Welcome aboard." Ida hummed.

"But if there's no atmosphere out there, what's that?" Rose pointed at the debris in the golden ring.

"Stars breaking up. Gas clouds. We have whole solar systems being ripped apart above our heads, before falling into that thing."

"So, a bit worse than a storm then."

"Just a bit."

"Just a bit, yeah."

Ida wasn't finished though. "What made you think we were on a moon?"

"Oh, well, uh…" The Doctor looked at me and I gave him a bored glance.

He knew what the consequences would be of giving away what I was to a group of already startled and stranded humans. I may not trust him completely, but I trust him enough to make the right call concerning that.

"My friend here has a sixth sense." He smiled, patting my shoulder and I glared; almost wishing he'd just told them. "She can sense power differences in large masses. Said this one was a moon and I trust her."

"It is hardly a moon now." I grumbled. "As I said, it's tainted. There is not much left to call it a moon. It is more accurately a 'lump of rock' as previously stated."

The Doctor just kept grinning. "Don't mind her. She's a bit blunt and is in a bad mood. Not a fan of quakes."

"Ah."

I stomped on the Doctor's foot for that and plopped myself back down onto the stairs, enjoying his pained hopping around. _That's what he gets for giving away a weakness of mine._ The captain dimmed the lights and began discussing things about the black hole, but it made no difference to me, so I remained sitting where I was. I refused a 'refreshment' from an Ood and frowned to myself at the stirring in my gut. The moon made me uncomfortable. Like constantly having something bitter sitting just under your tongue. Already, my stomach was beginning to itch and the words on the wall from before were bothering me. The Doctor had yet to be any less busy, or else I'd have told him. Currently, he was hugging one of the humans with a laugh and I sighed with a huff, wanting to just leave at this point. Of course, he suddenly ran, which set me on edge and I hurried after him.

"What is it?! What's wrong?!" Rose shouted after him; having been on his tail before I was.

He ignored her though, rushing back to where we'd parked to ship.

"Are we leaving?!" I asked, feeling almost hopeful until he reached the door and pulled uselessly at it; the computer announcing that it was out of commission.

"It can't be. It can't be!" He shouted.

"What's wrong? What is it? Doctor, the Tardis is in there. What's happened?" Rose asked and he said a set of words I never wanted to hear.

"The Tardis is gone… The earthquake. This section collapsed."

"But it's got to be out there somewhere." Rose said, peering through the porthole.

"Look down."

I went over to see after her and grimaced at the chasm that was now where the ship had been; where the whole _compartment_ had been. I turned, but the Doctor was already well on his way back to the control room and I followed after him in annoyance.

"The ground gave way. My Tardis must've fallen down right into the heart of the planet. But you've got robot drills heading the same way." The Doctor was informing Zach when I'd wandered back in.

"We can't divert the drilling."

"But I need my ship. It's all I've got. Literally, the only thing." He begged and I straightened, knowing the feelings he was undoubtedly experiencing now; only my clothing was the only thing I had left.

"Doctor, we've only got the resources to drill one central shaft down to the power source, and that's it. No diversions, no distractions, no exceptions. Your machine is lost. All I can do is offer you a lift if we ever get to leave this place, and _that_ is the end of it." Zach snapped.

"Can he go down with the drill then?" I asked, cutting in. "If there happened to be a tunnel or a cave of some sort, he might be able to stumble across it if he went down there."

"It's against protocol."

I narrowed my eyes. "So is sitting on the remnants of a moon orbiting a black hole, with no heed as to the cost of living. Money is not worth more than lives, yet you lot still sit here, without communication to your own bosses, no doubt. Now, you've got three more people who are stuck here and will undoubtedly end up helping you. The least you can do is lend him an extra space suit and let him take a walk when you reach the end of the drilling."

Zach hesitated, but reluctantly let out a sigh. "Fine. _If_ we reach the bottom, you can go down. Alright?"

Ida looked nervously between us, either due to the argument, or due to pity. "I'll, uh, put you on the duty roster. We need someone in the laundry."

The crew left to go do their business, leaving the Doctor, Rose and some of the Ood and I in the control hub. He leaned back on the console, still looking rather upset.

"I've trapped you here." He murmured to Rose.

"No, don't worry about me." She said, trying to stay strong as there was a small rumble. "Okay, we're on a moon that shouldn't exist, under a black hole and no way out. Yeah, I've changed my mind. Start worrying about me."

He pulled her into a hug and then turned to me. "I'm sorry too, Lux. I doubt this is the place you wanted to be and… thank you for earlier."

I huffed out my nose. "I've lived five hundred years on Earth. What more would a few dozen do?" I looked away. "And I understand what it's like to have nothing. Any hope you can get, Doctor. It's all you need to push you a bit farther. You're lucky you had a ship. All I have is the clothes on my back and the curse I'm stuck dealing with." I scowled then. "That will be the most difficult to deal with here."

"You can change though, right?"

I nodded. "In private, perhaps, though I won't be able to do much training. It's crawling with humans who already feel trapped. Just being in that room with them was tempting enough. Give it a few years, and you might have to throw me out as well."

"No. I won't let that happen." The Doctor said seriously and Rose nodded in agreement.

It was a strange feeling, to have someone that protective over me, but I brushed it off.

"You may have no other choice. You've seen hints of the madness from me, but it will only get worse. This place already makes me tense."

"Because it's tainted?" Rose asked and I hummed.

"Yes. A constant bitter taste, a… sense of unease, if you will. A rise in tension brings with it the urge to change. And there is something bothering me about those words."

"Words? What words?" The Doctor asked and I scowled at him.

"If you weren't so concerned over the black hole, you would have given me a chance to inform you about the script on the wall."

"You can read it?!" He exclaimed and I sighed, pulling away from him when he'd grabbed my arm.

"Not entirely. Pieces of it are similar to the old language of my people. There is not much, but what I understood of it was… I don't know how you would say it. Dark?"

"Y-You're not saying 'evil', are you?" Rose asked, forcing a small smile, but I pointed.

"Hm, yes. Fitting word, but not quite. Not to label a person. It is… like this moon. It is tainted and bitter."

"Let's go look at it again and you can help me translate it." The Doctor offered and I begrudgingly allowed him to led us back to the other room where apparently, it was time to eat.

* * *

Rose went over to grab a bite to eat as the Doctor and Lux worked on the writing.

"So, this is what?"

"In my language, it's *****." Lux said, but sighed when the Doctor blinked cluelessly. "It means 'hole', 'cavern', a… um… pit?"

"Alright. And that one?"

Lux frowned. "I'm not sure. It looks similar to our word for 'moon', but it's… different. This part here." She pointed to a sweep of the ink. "That's correct, but this…" She pointed to a splash of ink just to the side; a dot. "This is wrong. We use that in words depicting a person."

"Alien, then?" The Doctor offered. "A sort of moon man?"

Lux shook her head. "No. We don't describe people with words of the moon. The moon is more like… a leader, a powerful being."

"So, like a god then. It's the head of your species' religion."

She shrugged, looking uncertain. "Religion doesn't translate. We only have one, so there was never a need to give it a term. It simply is."

"So, you think this might have something to do with a god?"

"A powerful being, but not a god in the sense of something… good."

"You think it's something evil?"

Lux's frown grew. "The moon is not good nor evil. War for my species isn't even considered good or evil. It is something necessary and the moon's power is something life sustaining. However… the way the words are written." She again gestured to it. "The human must have copied it exactly. The characters are not written as they would have been if it were in praise of something like a moon. Even some of the words chosen… Not simply 'hole' but a dark form of the word that could mean 'pit' or 'cave'." She pointed at another symbol. "Not 'warriors', stated pridefully, but 'armed masses', 'fighters', 'attackers'. The words are similar, but one has darker context. These are written as such and the styling of it is bold, sweeping, nonuniform. If it was something to be praised or looked at pridefully, it would be straighter. More sharp angles, elegant, even."

She turned to the Doctor and immediately frowned at the grin on his face.

"Sorry, you just seem to know quite a bit for someone who claims to have had no other study than military."

Pink dusted her cheeks for a moment as she stood.

"I never said I studied nothing else. Simply that it wasn't done by most." She muttered and the Doctor got up as well and followed her to a table. "My grandfather was a scribe for the masses and the military." She informed him. "I was often left with him when my parents went out for missions and pack meetings. He didn't know how to handle children. I wasn't exactly… typical and found his chattering on of our language somewhat interesting."

"And you kept up with it." The Doctor smirked.

"In respect. He was killed in a long battle with Sontarans. Sent alone as reconnaissance… in a ship of two hundred." She didn't show any outward emotion, but the Doctor caught sight of her straightened shoulders and knew that this bothered her. "He was a hero. Crashed their ship while still in it to prevent their mothership from attacking us. He sent a warning that saved millions of our people."

"But… he was still your grandfather." The Doctor murmured and silence sat between them for a few moments before she let out a long breath and sagged slightly.

"I know…"

The Doctor started to reach for her hand. "Lux, I—"

"Sorry." Rose cut in, heading over with a smile and missing the action as the Doctor pulled his hand back. "Couldn't decide."

She sat down and the lights flickered, making the entire room glance at the ceiling as Ida talked to Zach.

"Zach? Have we got a problem?"

" _No more than usual. Got the Scarlet System burning up. Might be worth a look._ "

Ida looked to us with a small smile. "You might want to see this. Moment in history." She went and opened the shutters to show us the black hole again, and a wisp of red. "There. On the edge. That red cloud. That used to be the Scarlet System. Home to the Peluchi, a mighty civilisation spanning a billion years, disappearing forever. Their planets and suns consumed. Ladies and gentlemen, we have witnessed its passing."

She went to close it, but the Doctor stopped her.

"Uh, no. Could you leave it open? Just for a bit. I won't go man, I promise."

Ida nodded with a tease. "How would you know? Scooti, check the lockdown. Jefferson, sign off the airlock seals."

Lux stood, surprising her. "May I assist? I am not used to so little movement."

Ida blink, but nodded. "Sure. You can go with Scooti."

Scooti waved with a smile and Lux bowed her head, giving the Doctor a last look before heading off with the woman; leaving the Doctor and Rose alone again.

* * *

"So, I saw you and your Doctor friend looking at the words Toby wrote. Get anywhere with it?" Scooti asked me and I tilted my head slightly.

"It is similar to my—" I cut myself off before I could give away that I wasn't human.

 _She's like Reinette… The innocence, the light. I can't give away too much again. Not again._

"It's similar to something I've studied before. Pieces of it are the same, but it's different as well."

"Oh! Well, least _someone's_ getting somewhere. What does it talk about? Do you know?"

"A god of some sort and an army. There was mention of a pit as well, but it was written as a warning almost. It is… dark in many ways."

"Huh." She mused, walking into Toby's room. "Toby, I've got your expenditure."

Toby wasn't there though and she went to leave it on the desk, as the computer announced a nearby door opening and closing. She frowned though, looking to me.

"Did that say 'door 41'?"

"I believe so." I answered.

"That's impossible." She hurried from the room and led the way to door 41, asking the computer if it had opened it.

" _Confirmed._ "

"But that's the airlock. Why would you open the airlock? It's the night shift. We're not allowed outside. Has someone gone out?"

" _Confirmed._ "

"But who was it?" She questioned, looking at me as I frowned as well.

" _Cannot confirm._ "

Scooti shook her head. "Okay. But hold on, I know. Tell me whose spacesuit's been logged out."

" _No spacesuit has been logged out._ "

I immediately stiffened. "How can a human be outside without a suit?"

Scooti agreed. "But you're not making any sense. You can't go outside without..." She pulled up her wrist comm. "Zach, I think we've got breakdown on door 41. It's saying somebody's gone outside onto the planet's surface. Zach? Zach!"

There was no answer and I felt my uneasiness grow.

"Computer, trace fault." She demanded.

" _There is no fault._ "

"Tell me who went through that door."

" _He is awake._ "

"What?"

" _He is awake._ "

"What's that supposed to mean?"

I remembered something from the writing then and grabbed Scooti's arm. "We need to leave."

" _He bathes in the black sun._ "

Scooti glanced out the window nearby to see Toby, covered in the black ink standing outside. Immediately, my senses went haywire. He was dangerous, tainted. The words on the wall came back to me; suddenly making sense with the bits and pieces I'd translated. _'When the moon wakes, the pit will open, and all will be lost. His army will rise. He will bathe in the back sun. Beware the marks of the possessed.'_

"Scooti, we need to leave. _Now_." I snapped, pulling her from the glass and back to door 40.

The door wouldn't budge though and I heard cracking glass behind us. I cursed, knowing that there would be a breach and both of us will get thrown out into space, unless I did something.

"Don't be afraid of me, youngling." I muttered in her ear, making her look at me in confusion and fear of what was happening. "I must do this, or we will both die."

"Do what? W-What do you mean?"

The glass shattered behind us then and I changed the moment the wind whipped around us trying to suck out the last of the oxygen. Scooti screamed as alarms blared, while I fought to keep breathing what little oxygen there was and get the door opened. Scooti passed out and my own vision was fogging, before I practically ripped the door off and pulled the two of us through. I carried her to the next door and that one actually opened, before hauling her further away from the breach. _Protocol will seal the next few compartments leading to it until the oxygen can be restored. We need to get back to the others. To the center of the station._ I hefted Scooti into my arms and ran to the closest habitation area; where I quickly bristled.

Scooti's comm had been offline, so I hadn't heard Jefferson trying to contact her. I also hadn't heard that they were heading to where we were. So, when I burst through into Habitation Three, I hadn't thought to change back before entering. I thought I would have had more time. As it turns out, I didn't. There was now a fully changed werewolf standing tall in Habitation Three with a number of shocked and panicked humans; three of which, who had weapons.

"Dear God, what is that?" Jefferson breathed out, before he spotted Scooti in my arms and lifted his weapon along with the other two of his people. "You, whatever you are, drop her! Drop her this instant or I'll fill you full of lead."

I scoffed through my nose, unamused at the man's words when 'lead' was hardly something deadly to me, but growled when he stepped forward. Thankfully, the Doctor and Rose entered the room then.

"Lux?" Rose breathed, surprising the people in the room as the Doctor tried to calm everyone down and stepped between Jefferson and I.

"Whoa, now. Alright. We've got some explaining to do, but we can't get anywhere with that if you're pointing a weapon."

"Get that _thing_ to put Scooti down." Jefferson demanded and I huffed.

"Annoying pest." I growled, annoyed. "Ida, come here and take her. I will not place her on the ground, while unsure of her injuries."

"H-How do you…" Ida shook her head and hesitantly approached as I carefully maneuvered Scooti and handed her off.

Jefferson didn't lower his weapon though, just jabbed it in my direction. "What the hell are you? How did you get onboard?"

"Lower the weapon." The Doctor said sternly when I growled at the man. "She won't hurt anyone unless you give her good reason to."

"Oh, yeah? And why the hell should I believe you? That thing is probably trying to kill us!"

"You humans are always so quick to accuse." I snapped, baring my teeth. "I _saved_ her from dying when we were trapped in the breach. Or would you rather she be floating above your heads now, dead?"

"Why you—"

"Alright, alright, enough!" The Doctor said loudly, before turning to me. "Can you change back, Lux? We'll get nowhere with you like this."

I clicked my tongue. "An inconvenience, but fine. Lower the weapon and I will."

The Doctor turned to Jefferson. "Do it."

Jefferson hesitated, but lowered it slowly, and I changed back. I felt my breath hitch and cringed; grateful for the Doctor grabbing me and keeping me upright after I changed back or I'd surely be on the ground.

"But that's…"

"A-A werewolf?" Danny gaped.

"How the hell…"

The Doctor explained. "Yes. Lux is a werewolf, but she's not like your myths, okay? There's no need to point a weapon at her."

"But she had Scooti!"

I glared at the group. "Because I was sent with her to help around the ship. We were both caught in the area with the breach. The only way to get us out alive was to change. You may ask her when she wakes, if you have no faith in me."

They looked hesitant, but the Doctor turned to me after he helped me sit in a chair.

"Lux, what happened?"

"We went to give Toby a folder, but he wasn't there and the computer announced a door opening. Scooti looked surprised and we discovered someone had gone outside the airlock without a spacesuit." My gaze shifted to Toby. "Toby was standing outside covered in the writing from the wall."

"What?!"

"That is what I saw and what Scooti did as well." I snapped, ignoring the disbelieving looks I was receiving from the crew. "I do not know what caused the breach, but the glass of the window shattered first as we were struggling to get into a different section. The doors were malfunctioning."

"Impossible. You're lying." Jefferson accused and I growled, but the Doctor lightly placed a hand on my shoulder.

"Lux, there's something else, isn't there?"

I shifted my gaze to his and over to the writing on the wall nearby. "I was able to connect some of the minor translations I made into sentences during the altercation. The computer mentioned a few things that helped."

"What did it say?"

"'He is awake' and 'He bathes in the black sun'."

The Doctor's eyes widened as did a few others. "You're sure? It said 'he is awake'?"

I nodded, looking confused. "Yes, why?"

Rose held up her phone. "I heard an Ood say some odd things and my phone—uh, communicator said that too. We were just down there with Danny and the Ood chanted it a few times."

"Danny?" Ida questioned and the young man held up his hands.

"I-It really happened! The Ood were fine, but then they said 'he is awake' and the Ood all got up and said 'we will worship him'. I thought it was a malfunction or something, but… I heard the computer say it before. When I was closing door three."

"Lux, what did you translate?" The Doctor asked then. "Word for word, what did you get?"

"It was a warning." I replied. "'When the moon wakes, the pit will open, and all will be lost. His army will rise. He will bathe in the back sun. Beware the marks of the possessed'."

"Moon?"

I nodded, looking over at Ida. "It is similar to the writing of the old language of my people. We treat the moon as a god of sorts. Roughly translated, it would be a god or a devil or demon in this case. However, it is the 'marks of the possessed' part that caught my attention." I looked at Toby, eyes narrowed. "I distinctly saw the writing covering his skin as he stood outside the station. He should have been dead, yet here he is."

"H-Hey. I don't remember that! I don't remember anything! There's no way I did that! It's impossible! You guys aren't seriously going to believe that… that _thing_ over me!"

Scooti groaned then and Ida helped her sit up and drink some water as I huffed, nodding my head towards her.

"Then ask her. Her story will match up with mine, I assure you."

"Scooti, could you tell us what happened?" Ida asked, glancing at me cautiously.

"O-Oh… Well, um… Lux and I, we were giving Toby his expenditure, but he wasn't in his room and then…" Her eyes widened and she quickly turned to Toby in fear. "Y-You were standing outside the airlock. I-I don't know how, but… You looked at me a-and your eyes were red and you had these black marks on you."

A number of eyes shifted to me, but she continued.

"Then Lux pulled me to the door, but we couldn't get out. T-They were malfunctioning or something. I thought I was going to die." She breathed out. "But…" Her gaze shifted to me and she stood slowly. "You… You saved me, didn't you?"

I looked away, hating how her innocent gaze reminded me of Reinette. "Younglings shouldn't have to be placed into life or death situations." I muttered.

"But you…" She hesitated, looking at the others briefly and beginning to see how cautious they were of me. "You became this… this beast."

"We saw." Jefferson grumbled. "She came in here carrying you. You were unconscious. We wanted to hear your side of things before we determined what to do."

Scooti looked confused. "What do you mean? She saved me."

"Yeah, but she _is_ kind of a werewolf." Danny added, though he looked more serious than afraid of what I was.

"And you're war-hungry, hairless apes." I countered. "For a group of people so eager to sit around orbiting a black hole, you are far too defensive over a creature from another world."

"You mean, you're not from Earth?" Danny asked eagerly.

"No, though I had lived on your planet for five hundred years after a crash. Most of your myths are based on me."

The group stiffened and the Doctor cut in.

"She has bad days."

"And how do we know _today_ isn't a bad day?" Jefferson argued, and I scoffed.

"Please. I'm much more civilized than your species gives me credit for, and you've seen as much. My species simply goes mad should they be locked down for a long period of time without proper training. For myself, it takes at least half a dozen or more years to get to that state." My cold eyes shifted to Jefferson. "And that was while chained up and being tortured for what I am."

He straightened, looking hesitant, and I looked away, standing.

"As it is, I am able to move and can train in one of your empty rooms, if allowed. I could last a century before giving into the madness if it weren't for whatever is going on with this moon."

"Again, you say moon." Ida spoke up, looking less fearful of me, surprisingly. "Why a moon?"

"I'm able to sense powers of moons, as many can, for my species. This one has lost most of it, but there is still some left."

"But people lived here." Toby argued.

"And people have lived on moons before." The Doctor added with a shrug. "I know a number of species who have made their homes on their planet's moons."

"Okay, but what about him?" Scooti asked, pointing cautiously at Toby. "Lux and I both saw the same thing, so we weren't imagining it."

"B-But I'm fine! Look! I don't have any writing!" Toby tried to defend himself.

"Could be dormant." The Doctor suggested. "The only thing we _can_ do is just keep an eye on him."

I nodded in agreement. "Should we attempt to isolate him, whatever possessed him may pass onto another."

"And what about you?" Jefferson questioned. "I don't exactly feel safe with a _werewolf_."

I shrugged. "Do what you will. I'm not so dull to think that my words alone will convince you I am of no harm, but I am willing to offer my assistance."

The room grew silent and I frowned, feeling something off about the quiet, but Ida knew what it was.

"It's stopped."

"What was that? What was it?" Rose asked and the Doctor started to smile.

"The drill."

Ida nodded. "We've stopped drilling. We've made it. Point zero."

* * *

The Doctor tucked his helmet under his arm and walked towards Rose and Lux with a small grin.

"Oxygen, nitro balance, gravity. It's ages since I wore one of these."

"I want that spacesuit back in one piece, you got that?" Rose said and he nodded as he put on his helmet.

"Yes, sir." He looked over at Lux then, seeing her tense posture and knowing that she wasn't in a pleasant mood after the altercation with Jefferson and the others. "Lux?"

She turned to him and he was pleased to see some of the iciness fall at his beckon.

"Thanks again, for getting them to let me go down."

She shrugged. "The only thing I have from my planet is my clothes. I've had them taken from me before, so I know how it feels."

He reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Really. Thank you… And keep an eye on Rose for me. If there really is something trying to hurt the people on this station—"

"I will protect your youngling." She answered, before turning away. "Younglings are the only humans I find tolerable."

He chuckled. "Yeah, I can see that. You're awfully motherly for a big, fearsome werewolf, aren't you?"

She shot him a glare at his tease, before Rose bumped into his shoulder with a smile.

"I'll see you later." The Doctor said and she nodded.

"Not if I see you first." She chuckled and kissed the visor of his spacesuit before he climbed into the pod.

Ida came over as well to join him, but paused and got Lux's attention.

"Thank you. For saving Scooti… I just wanted to say that."

Lux nodded. "I will keep her safe as well, while you are gone."

* * *

Ida looked surprised, but accepted the gesture and went into the capsule with the Doctor as Zach announced the countdown. I straightened though, feeling that uneasiness in me grow suddenly, right before the station shook.

"Doctor? Doctor, are you alright?" Rose called out into the comm as Zach did the same.

" _Ida, report to me. Doctor?_ "

" _It's alright. We've made it. Getting out of the capsule now._ " The Doctor announced and Rose relaxed.

"What's it like down there?"

" _It's hard to tell. Some sort of cave. Cavern. It's massive._ "

There was mention of a gravity globe and amazement from Ida, but I wasn't listening. I was more busy trying to find out what was bothering me. _This stupid place has my wolf-side on high alert. That usually doesn't happen when I'm not changed._ Then, I finally heard something important.

" _Captain, sir. There's something happening with the Ood._ " Danny announced and I turned towards the comm.

" _What are they doing?_ "

" _They're staring at me. I've told them to stop, but they won't_."

" _Danny, you're a big boy. I think you can take being stared at._ " Zach mocked him.

" _But the telepathic field, sir. It's at basic one hundred. I've checked. There isn't any fault. It's definitely one hundred._ "

" _But that's impossible._ "

Rose looked at me and spoke. "What's basic one hundred mean?"

" _They should be dead._ "

"Basic one hundred's brain death." Jefferson answered her as well.

"Lux?" Rose said hesitantly. "You said you're sort of telepathic too, yeah? Do… Do you feel anything?"

All eyes went to me.

"My telepathic abilities are different." I grumbled, still feeling on edge. "I cannot do anything without a physical touch first, though… I can feel certain things. It's my instinct." My eyes shifted to hers. "I _am_ a wolf."

She nodded. "Then, what do your instincts say?"

"Something is wrong." I answered simply, shifting my weight as I looked around. "I am on edge for no apparent reason. As though being watched, hunted."

Jefferson took that as some admittance and looked at his armed guards. "Officer, at arms."

Rose looked shocked. "You can't fire a gun in here. What if you hit a wall?"

"I'm firing stock fifteen. It only impacts upon organics." He answered, looking at his guard. "Keep watch. Guard them."

His gaze shifted to mine briefly, but I paid it no mind.

" _We found something._ " The Doctor announced after questioning if anything was happening. " _It looks like metal. Like some sort of seal. I've got a nasty feeling the word might be trapdoor. Not a good word, trapdoor. Never met a trapdoor I liked._ "

" _The edge is covered with those symbols._ " Ida added and I turned with narrowed eyes.

"It's the pit." Rose looked hesitant, but informed the Doctor.

"Lux says it's the pit."

" _Wouldn't surprise me._ "

" _Do you think it opens?_ " Zach asked.

" _That's what trapdoors tend to do, though if Lux is right, I think the last thing we want is for it to open._ "

" _Trapdoor doesn't do it justice. It's massive, Zach. About thirty feet in diameter._ "

" _Toby, do you know anything more about the lettering than Lux?_ " Zach asked and Rose turned to him.

"Toby, they need to know that lettering. Does it make any sort of sense?" She looked at me. "Lux? Anything?"

I went to answer, but Toby spoke.

"I know what it says."

I immediately shifted my gaze to him as alarm bells rang in my head.

"When did you work that out?" Jefferson questioned as I moved between the group and him.

"He didn't." I snarled as Toby stood and I caught sight of the black lettering, preparing myself to change as I growled. "He's possessed again."

" **T** h **e** s **e** a **r** e **t** h **e** w **o** r **d** s **o** f **t** h **e** B **e** a **s** t. **A** n **d** h **e** h **a** s **w** o **k** e **n**. H **e** i **s** t **h** e **h** e **a** r **t** t **h** a **t** b **e** a **t** s **i** n **t** h **e** d **a** r **k** n **e** s **s**. H **e** i **s** t **h** e **b** l **o** o **d** t **h** a **t** w **i** l **l** n **e** v **e** r **c** e **a** s **e**. A **n** d **n** o **w** h **e** w **i** l **l** r **i** s **e**." Toby answered, voice not his own as I changed and growled down at him; whereas Jefferson and his guards aimed their guns at him.

"Officer, stand down." Jefferson ordered. "Stand down!"

" _What is it? What's he done? What's happening? Rose, Lux, what's going on?_ " The Doctor asked, and Rose answered.

"He's come out in those symbols all over his face. They're all over him like Lux and Scooti said."

" **M** r. **J** e **f** f **e** r **s** o **n**. T **e** l **l** m **e** , s **i** r. **D** i **d** y **o** u **r** w **i** f **e** e **v** e **r** f **o** r **g** i **v** e **y** o **u**?" Toby questioned as I growled, seeing his question startle the man.

"I don't know what you mean."

Toby smirked. " **L** e **t** m **e** t **e** l **l** y **o** u **a** s **e** c **r** e **t**. S **h** e **n** e **v** e **r** d **i** d."

"Officer, you stand down and be confined." Jefferson shouted.

" **O** r **w** h **a** t?"

"Or _I'll_ confine you." I snapped, fur bristling as Toby's gaze shifted to me.

" **B** u **t** h **o** w **m** a **n** y **c** a **n** y **o** u **k** i **l** l, **b** e **a** s **t**?" He questioned, making my back stiffen.

 _I hadn't said I was going to kill him. Was it an assumption? Based on what?_ He opened his mouth with a screech that had me taking a step back and cringing, as the lettering on his skin flew towards the Ood. Toby coughed and collapsed on the ground—no longer possessed—but the Ood shifted with red eyes; speaking in unison.

" **W** e **a** r **e** t **h** e **l** e **g** i **o** n **o** f **t** h **e** b **e** a **s** t. **T** h **e** L **e** g **i** o **n** s **h** a **l** l **b** e **m** a **n** y **a** n **d** t **h** e **L** e **g** i **o** n **s** h **a** l **l** b **e** f **e** w."

" _Rose? What is it, Rose? Lux? I'm going back up._ "

"It's the Ood." Rose breathed out into the comm as I snarled and growled at the Ood.

"Sir, we have contamination in the livestock." Jefferson reported to Zach.

"Doctor, I don't know what it is. I-I think they're possessed like Toby."

"They won't listen to us."

" **H** e **h** a **s** w **o** v **e** n **h** i **m** s **e** l **f** i **n** t **h** e **f** a **b** r **i** c **o** f **y** o **u** r **l** i **f** e **s** i **n** c **e** t **h** e **d** a **w** n **o** f **t** i **m** e. **S** o **m** e **m** a **y** c **a** l **l** h **i** m **A** b **a** d **d** o **n**. S **o** m **e** m **a** y **c** a **l** l **h** i **m** K **r** o **p** t **o** r. **S** o **m** e **m** a **y** c **a** l **l** h **i** m **S** a **t** a **n** o **r** L **u** c **i** f **e** r." The Ood went on. " **O** r **t** h **e** B **r** i **n** g **e** r **o** f **D** e **s** p **a** i **r** , t **h** e **D** e **a** t **h** l **e** s **s** P **r** i **n** c **e** , t **h** e B **r** i **n** g **e** r **o** f **N** i **g** h **t**. T **h** e **s** e **a** r **e** t **h** e **w** o **r** d **s** t **h** a **t** s **h** a **l** l **s** e **t** h **i** m **f** r **e** e."

"Back up to the door!" Jefferson shouted as the Ood moved closer.

" **I** s **h** a **l** l b **e** c **o** m **e** m **a** n **i** f **e** s **t**."

"Move quickly!"

" **I** s **h** a **l** l **w** a **l** k **i** n **t** h **e** n **i** g **h** t."

"To the door! Get it open!"

" **M** y **L** e **g** i **o** n **s** s **h** a **l** l **s** w **a** r **m** a **c** r **o** s **s** t **h** e **w** o **r** l **d** s."

Then, the whole station began to shake violently. My ears went flat across my skull as I stumbled back and eyed the ceiling.

"Lux!"

Rose's voice called me out of my fear and I swatted away the nearest Ood with a snap of my teeth as we all backed up to the door.

" **I** a **m** t **h** e **s** i **n** a **n** d **t** h **e** t **e** m **p** t **a** t **i** o **n** a **n** d **t** h **e** d **e** s **i** r **e**. I **a** m **t** h **e** p **a** i **n** a **n** d **t** h **e** l **o** s **s** a **n** d **t** h **e** —"

"Get that door open!" Jefferson shouted as Scooti and the guard pulled at the door.

" **I** h **a** v **e** b **e** e **n** i **m** p **r** i **s** o **n** e **d** f **o** r **e** t **e** r **n** i **t** y, **b** u **t** n **o** m **o** r **e**. T **h** e **p** i **t** i **s** o **p** e **n** a **n** d **I** a **m** f **r** e **e**."

I swung a paw, growling and snapping at the Ood and making them fall back, before one of them shocked me with its translator orb. Then, all bets were off. My eyes went feral as I lunged, grabbing Ood and throwing them away with terrifying power before ripping them to shreds. When they finally stopped, I hovered, panting with teeth bared and ears back in search of any further movement that would say we were in danger, but there was none.

"L-Lux. I think they're dead. We're okay now."

I bristled and whipped around when Rose lightly touched my back and she jerked away when I growled. I hadn't noticed who it was I was growing at for a second, but then the red in my vision cleared and I stopped. Rose and the others stood, looking frightened of me and I relaxed as best I could; knowing that I must look terrifying to them while covered in blood and snarling. I turned my head away and cleared my throat.

"Apologies." I murmured. "Though please remember that I need a minute to calm myself after attacking. Coming up behind me while I'm in that state is… dangerous."

"Right." Rose muttered, before he eyes widened. "Doctor!" She hurried to the comm. "Doctor? Doctor, can you hear me? Doctor, Ida, are you there?"

The computer announced a door opening and I quickly rushed towards it, prepared to attack and protect Scooti—who was the closest to it—only to very nearly turn Danny into a puddle on the floor.

"D-Dear God!"

I pulled back and lowered my lips to hide the snarl as I grabbed him and pulled him in before closing the door.

"You will take care to announce your presence _before_ entering." I complained, narrowing my eyes at the shaking man. "I almost tore you to shreds."

"I-I can s-s-see that."

Jefferson went over and placed a hand on his shoulder. "How many of the Ood are possessed?"

"All of them. All fifty." Danny breathed out, still in shock as he took in the mess I'd made. "O-Or, um, forty-seven. Did you do that?"

I shot him a look that said I wasn't about to answer his question, before the door again began to open.

"But they're armed! It's the interface device. I don't know how, but they're using it as a weapon." Danny exclaimed and I snarled again.

"I know."  
The Ood opened the door and I abruptly threw myself through it and attacked them once more; ignoring the jolts from their translator orbs. With three more Ood down, I returned back to the other room as Zach called over the comm to try and figure out what was happening.

"I've got very little ammunition, sir, though the werewolf seems to be keeping us from any major harm." Jefferson answered him, eyeing me. "How about you?"

" _All I've got is a bolt gun with, uh… all of one bolt. I could take out a grand total of one Ood. Fat lot of good that is._ "

"Given the emergency, I recommend strategy nine." Jefferson said, making Rose and I look at him.

" _Strategy nine, agreed. Right, we need to get everyone together. Rose? What about Ida and the Doctor? Any word?_ "

Rose took the comm. "I can't get a reply. Just nothing. I keep trying, but it's—"

" _No, sorry. I'm fine. Still here._ " The Doctor announced in the nick of time and Rose let out a huge sigh of relief.

"You could have said, you stupid—"

Whatever curse she'd flung at him was lost with a screech of feedback that made me recoil with a wince.

" _Whoa. Careful! Anyway, it's both of us. Me and Ida. Hello. But the seal opened up. It's gone. All we've got left is this chasm_." The Doctor mused.

" _How deep is it?_ " Zach asked.

" _Can't tell. It looks like it goes down forever._ "

"The pit is open." Rose said, looking at me. "That's what the voice said. Whatever's possessed the Ood."

" _But there's nothing. I mean, there's nothing coming out?_ "

" _No, no. no sign of the Beast._ "

"It said Satan." Rose murmured.

" _Come on, Rose. Keep it together._ " The Doctor said calmly.

"Is there no such thing, Doctor? Doctor, tell me there's no such thing."

She looked desperate and I shifted towards her.

"There's no such thing, youngling." I answered her fear with my own confidence. "My species believe in no such thing and while yours may, it is probably much like the myths of werewolves. This may be the creature behind the myth, but that does not make it an immortal, a demon, or whatever other nonsense. It is a creature just as I am, just as feared, but not impenetrable. It has weaknesses just as any other. One that the Doctor will undoubtedly take care of."

" _Sounds like a lot of trust in me, despite what you said before about being so hard to trust, Lux._ " The Doctor said and I frowned when I realized that Rose hadn't released the comm button when I spoke.

"I may trust you with some aspects, Doctor, but not with others. You, after all, have placed trust in me to watch over the younglings here. I must reciprocate in some way."

" _Way to take the thunder out of my sails, Lux._ "

I snorted as Zach gave his order.

" _Ida, I recommend that you withdraw. Immediately._ "

" _But we've come all this way._ " She argued.

" _Okay, that was an order. Withdraw. When that thing opened, the whole planet's shifted. One more inch and we fall into the black hole. So, this thing stops right now._ "

" _But it's not much better up there with the Ood._ "

" _I'm initiating strategy nine, so I need the two of you back up top immediately, no ar—_ " He stopped as the comm was cut off, but I had the feeling she'd _turned_ it off rather than something having happened.

After a moment though, the Doctor came back on.

" _Rose, Lux, we're coming back._ "

"Best news I've heard all day."


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry it's short. Just wanted to finish up this part. It _was_ going to be part of the last chapter, but I made it a different chapter entirely... forgot why.**

* * *

My ears went back when I heard the cocking of a weapon and a low growl escaped my throat when Jefferson turned towards Toby and me.

"What're you doing?" Rose demanded from him.

"He's infected. He brought that thing on board. You saw it." He turned his narrowed eyes to me. "And I don't trust that _thing_ as far as I can throw it."

I lifted my lips in a snarl, but Rose pressed on.

"Are you going to start shooting your own people now? Is that what you're going to do? Is it?"

"If necessary."

Rose stepped between us then, surprising me marginally. "Well then, you'll have to shoot me, _if necessary._ So, what's it going to be?" She challenged, gesturing to the frightened Toby. "Look at his face. Whatever it was, it's gone. It passed into the Ood. You saw it happen. He's clean."

"Your _friend_ said it's just dormant."

"Yes, but if we shoot him, it'll just pass onto another." I snapped heatedly, annoyed with the man's lack of logic. "Might pass onto you. Might pass onto me. And that's the last thing you want."

He frowned, but slowly lowered the gun. "Any sign of trouble, I'll shoot them."

I scoffed. "Like your bullets will do me much harm."

Rose rolled her eyes and went to try and comfort Toby, as Jefferson got the pod set up to bring back the Doctor and Ida. The moment they tried however, the power went out and that voice was back as the Ood appeared on the screen.

" **T** h **i** s **i** s **t** h **e** d **a** r **k** n **es** s. **T** h **i** s **i** s _**m**_ _y_ **d** o **m** a **i** n. **Y** o **u** l **i** t **t** l **e** t **h** i **n** g **s** t **h** a **t** l **i** v **e** i **n** t **h** e **l** i **g** h **t** , c **l** i **n** g **i** n **g** t **o** y **o** u **r** f **e** e **b** l **e** s **u** n **s** w **h** i **c** h **d** i **e** i **n** t **h** e—"

" _That's not the Ood. Something's talking through them._ " Zach interjected.

" **O** n **l** y **t** h **e** d **a** r **k** n **e** s **s** r **e** m **a** i **n** s."

" _This is Captain Zachary Cross Flane of Sanctuary Base Six, representing the Torchwood archive. You will identify yourself._ " He demanded, though the name 'Torchwood' made my ears flick back.

" **Y** o **u** k **n** o **w** m **y** n **a** m **e**."

" _What do you want?_ "

" **Y** o **u** w **i** l **l** d **i** e **h** e **r** e. **A** l **l** o **f** y **o** u. **T** h **i** s **m** o **o** n **i** s **y** o **u** r **g** r **a** v **e**."

The Doctor spoke then, challengingly. " _If you are the Beast, then answer me this. Which one, hmm? Cos the universe has been busy since you've been gone. There's more religions than there are planets in the sky. The Archiphets, Orkology, Christianity, Pash Pash, New Judaism, San Klah, Church of the Tin Vagabond. Which devil are you?_ "

" **A** l **l** o **f** t **h** e **m**."

" _What? Then you're… the truth behind the myth?_ "

" **T** h **i** s **o** n **e** k **n** o **w** s **m** e **a** s **I** k **n** o **w** h **i** m. **T** h **e** k **i** l **l** e **r** o **f** h **i** s **o** w **n** k **i** n **d**."

" _How did you end up on this rock?_ " The Doctor went on, though I was silently curious about what this creature meant by that.

" **T** h **e** D **i** s **c** i **p** l **e** s **o** f **t** h **e** L **i** g **h** t **r** o **s** e **u** p **a** g **a** i **n** s **t** m **e** a **n** d **c** h **a** i **n** e **d** m **e** i **n** t **h** e **p** i **t** f **o** r **a** l **l** e **t** e **r** n **i** t **y**."

" _When was this?_ "

" **B** e **f** o **r** e **t** i **m** e."

" _What does that mean?_ "

" **B** e **f** o **r** e **t** i **m** e."

" _What does 'before time' mean?_ " He pressed.

" **B** e **f** o **r** e **t** i **m** e a **n** d **l** i **g** h **t** **a** n **d** s **p** a **c** e **a** n **d** m **a** t **t** e **r**. B **e** f **o** r **e** t **h** e **c** a **t** a **c** l **y** s **m**. B **e** f **o** r **e** t **h** i **s** u **n** i **v** e **r** s **e** w **a** s **c** r **e** a **t** e **d**."

" _That's impossible. No life could have existed back then_."

" **I** s **t** h **a** t _**y**_ _o_ _ **u**_ _r_ **r** e **l** i **g** i **o** n?"

"… _It's a belief_."

" **Y** o **u** k **n** o **w** n **o** t **h** i **n** g. **A** l **l** o **f** y **o** u, **s** o **s** m **a** l **l**. T **h** e **C** a **p** t **a** i **n** , s **o** s **c** a **r** e **d** o **f** c **o** m **m** a **n** d. **T** h **e** s **o** l **d** i **e** r, **h** a **u** n **t** e **d** b **y** t **h** e **e** y **e** s **o** f **h** i **s** w **i** f **e**. T **h** e **s** c **i** e **n** t **i** s **t** , s **t** i **l** l **r** u **n** n **i** n **g** f **r** o **m** d **a** d **d** y. **T** h **e** l **i** t **t** l **e** b **o** y **w** h **o** l **i** e **d**. T **h** e **v** i **r** g **i** n. **T** h **e** o **r** p **h** a **n** a **n** d **t** h **e** l **o** n **e** l **y** , t **e** r **r** i **f** i **e** d **w** o **l** f. **A** n **d** t **h** e **n** t **h** e **r** e **i** s **t** h **e** l **o** s **t** g **i** r **l** , s **o** f **a** r **a** w **a** y **f** r **o** m **h** o **m** e. **T** h **e** v **a** l **i** a **n** t **c** h **i** l **d** w **h** o **w** i **l** l **d** i **e** i **n** b **a** t **t** l **e** s **o** v **e** r **y** s **o** o **n**."

"Doctor, what does that mean?" Rose questioned nervously.

" _Rose, don't listen._ "

"What does it mean?"

" **Y** o **u** w **i** l **l** d **i** e **a** n **d** I **w** i **l** l **l** i **v** e."

A red horned beast appeared on the screen, cackling away and making the others jump as I snarled and it vanished. It was startling enough though, to send the others into a panicked frenzy and I was grateful to the Doctor for making the feedback some through the comm to shut everyone up. I didn't tend to do very well in a group of panicked humans. Though it seemed that I was going to have to deal with them all, because midway through the Doctor's encouraging speech, the cable to his pod snapped; cutting him off. This meant that the comms were down and—though their life signs were still there—the Doctor and Ida were trapped down there with the pit.

* * *

"But we've got to bring them back." Rose said desperately, but Jefferson glanced down the hole of the pod.

"They're ten miles down. We haven't got another ten miles of cable."

Ood started banging at the door again and Lux growled as Jefferson spoke to Zach.

"Captain? Situation report."

" _It's the Ood. They're cutting through the door bolts. They're breaking in._ "

"Yeah, it's the same on door twenty-five."

"How long's it going to take?" Rose asked, worried.

"Well, it's only a basic frame. It should take ten minutes." He corrected himself when a bolt was cut. "Eight."

" _I've got a security frame. It might last a bit longer, but that doesn't help you_." Zach added, and Lux piped up.

"So, a plan is needed to get off this station or to stop the Ood. My killing them all will do us no good if the beast in the pit simply moves on to take over us."

"But how?" Danny asked as she changed back to her human form with a grunt and a small stagger.

"You heard the Doctor." Rose said, growing in confidence. "Why do you think that thing cut him off? Cos, he was making sense. He was telling you to think your way out of this. Come on! For starters, we need some lights. There's got to be some sort of power somewhere."

Zach sighed heavily. " _There's nothing I can do. Some Captain, stuck in here, pressing buttons._ "

Lux let out a sigh as Rose tried to encourage him.

"That's what the Doctor meant. Press the right buttons."

" _They've gutted the generators... But the rocket's got an independent supply. If I could reroute that. Mister Jefferson? Open the bypass conduits. Override the safety_." Zach commanded and Jefferson did as he said, seeing what he was planning. " _Channeling rocket feed in three, two, one… power._ "

The lights came back on and Rose grinned.

"There we go!"

"Let there be light!" Danny smiled as well and Scooti turned to Lux with a grin and lightly tapped her arm in a friendly punch.

"What about that Strategy Nine thing?" Rose asked then.

"Not enough power. It needs a hundred percent." Jefferson grunted out.

"So, a way out is needed." Lux mused and Rose nodded.

"Zach, mister Jefferson, you start working on that. Toby, what about you?"

"I'm not a soldier. I can't do anything." He said dejectedly.

"No, you're the archaeologist. What do you know about the pit?"

"Well, nothing. We can't even translate the language."

"Ah, but Lux can. Somewhat anyway. That should help. You two can work on translating some of the scripts."

Lux grunted and went over to join Toby, who looked a little uncertain, but got to work. Rose turned to Danny and Scooti next.

"As for you, Danny boy, you're in charge of the Ood. Any way of stopping them other than letting Lux take care of it?"

"Well, I don't know…"

"Then find out. The sooner we get control of the base, the sooner we can get the Doctor out. You can help him too, Scooti. Shift!"

The group did their best and Danny and Scooti finlly found a way to potentially take out all the Ood at once, but the group was nearly out of time.

"Mister Jefferson, sir, any way out?" Rose asked and he grunted.

"Just about. There's a network of maintenance tunnels running underneath the base. We should be able to gain access from here."

Rose smirked. "Ventilation shafts."

"Yeah, I appreciate the reference, but there's no ventilation. No air, in fact, at all. They were designed for machines, not life forms."

" _But._ " Zach chimed in. " _I can manipulate the oxygen field from here. Create discrete pockets of atmosphere. If I control it manually, I can follow you through the network_."

"Right. So, we go down and you make the air follow us by hand."

" _You wanted me pressing buttons._ " He joked.

"Yeah, I asked for it. Okay, we need to get to Ood Habitation. Work out a route."

A route was planned and not a moment too soon. The Ood were breaking in.

"Danny!" Rose called out to the young man who was desperately trying to download the virus that would knock out the Ood.

"Hold on! Just conforming."

"Dan, we have got to go now! Come on!" Jefferson added on and Danny grinned and pulled the chip out with a cheer as they rushed to the shafts that they'd be crawling through. Rose and Scooti though, paused as Lux didn't move and simply eyed the door the Ood were breaking in through.

"Lux?"

She turned to Rose and finally let out a huff. "I'm going to take the above route."

"What?!"

She sighed in annoyance at their yelling. "I can clear out some of the Ood this way and keep them from interfering with you in the vents. I'll get to Ood Habitation before you and secure it so you don't have to worry about the Ood getting in. Besides…" She changed and wrinkled her nose in a sort of grimace. "…I won't be able to continuously change back and forth like this for much longer without bigger consequences. And the vents are too small to change into this form. I'll be useless in there with you, so I will remain out here and keep them back."

"But the Doctor told you to protect us."

She grumbled low in her throat. "And I am, in the best way possible. I can't protect you cramped up in a vent. Now, go. They'll be here soon."

"Well, if you're staying, then I'm just going to say this again. Werewolf or not, thanks. For saving me and everything." Scooti smiled and Lux's wolfish face softened slightly as she leaned down and nuzzled Scooti briefly.

"You are most welcome, youngling, though I appreciate your kindness towards me in this appearance, seeing as the others were not so accepting."

"They'll come around." She shrugged, ducking into the vent and Rose gave Lux a small forced smile; trying to overcome her concern and uneasiness with Lux not going with them.

"You be careful and… try not to kill them. The Doctor is… really against that sort of thing."

Lux turned away with a murmured, "I know" and Rose nodded before ducking into the vent; closing the metal grating just as the Ood broke through and Lux charged in with a growl.

* * *

It was mesmerizing. The hunt, the thrill of the chase. I hadn't felt like this in a long while and for once, the madness in the back of my mind wasn't of any concern. My heart was pounding as I tossed aside another Ood and rushed through to the next corridor. The occasional jolt from their orbs went through me, but it only enticed me further. The small voice in the back of my mind tried to remind me about what Rose had asked. How I shouldn't kill the creatures. How the Doctor wouldn't be pleased if I did, but I wasn't thinking. Nothing was going through my mind other than pushing passed the Ood and the occasional streak of anger when I was attacked in return. My instinct was going nuts. I was thrilled, overjoyed, for no reason other than being able to run through and get rid of that energy that had been building up in me for the longest time. I didn't realize when I'd reached Ood Habitation. Didn't hear when Rose and the others had burst through—minus one Jefferson—and I simply continued to attack the group of Ood in the room.

 _Run! Run and be afraid! Look at me! I throw you aside so easily. I tear through you like a freshly sharpened blade. You don't stand a chance against the wolf! Against the Beast!_ _ **Y**_ _o_ _ **u**_ _w_ _ **i**_ _l_ _ **l**_ _d_ _ **i**_ _e_ _ **a**_ _n_ _ **d**_ _I_ _ **w**_ _i_ _ **l**_ _l_ _ **l**_ _i_ _ **v**_ _e!_

"Stop!"

"Lux!"

I froze, mind clearing slightly as I'd been about to tear the head off of the next Ood with my jaws, except… I wasn't holding an Ood. Scooti quivered in my grip, tears streaming down her face as I slowly pulled back and closed my jaws in stunned silence. I released her, allowing her to fall to the ground in shock and terror as I took a few steps back; struggling to clear my mind, to remember what was happening and how I had gotten to this point. Rose, Danny and Toby rushed to Scooti's side as I moved a little further away, almost angry at the shame that had begun to well up in me. _No… No, I-I shouldn't be bothered. I told them not to approach me when I was… but…_ did _they approach me? But I was protecting them from the Ood. I was…_ I looked around and spotted the Ood on the ground, from my doing and unconscious from whatever Rose and the others had done. _How long have they been down? Scooti, she…_ I look back to the others and flinched slightly at the look Toby shot me as they tried to calm her. _I attacked her. Everything is a bit fuzzy, but… I did, didn't I? I-I lost control. For a moment, I… The madness crept up. The Beast, he did this to me. He put a crack in my armor, let it through. I didn't even notice… I nearly killed a youngling. A youngling I had promised to protect._

" _Monster!"_

" _Beast! Kill the beast!"_

" _Die!"_

I flinched back when Rose stood and shifted towards me, wanting to put as much distance between us as I could, but she didn't let up.

"Lux, what happened?"

I hesitated, cautious as I looked between her and the others. _She's… not angry? I just… I just attacked one of her people. Why isn't she… Why isn't she acting like the others?_ She seemed to realize I was a little unnerved by her question and she took a small step forward.

"I don't think you would have attacked us knowingly. You saved Scooti before and even when… when you went after me on the Tardis, you only did it to scare me. I don't think you hurt anyone without a reason." She smiled a bit. "I want to believe you're a good person, so tell us what happened."

I waited a moment longer, not sensing any hostility from her, and I bowed my head slightly.

"I… lost control for a moment. The Beast must have done something. My instinct has already made me tense and more susceptible to various things here, but… it loosened my control on the madness for a moment. I… apologize. I should have been more cautious in this atmosphere." I shifted my silver eyes to Scooti as I changed back into my human form. "I did not mean to place you in that position. I will stay like this, unless necessary, to assist in keeping the madness at bay and… for your peace of mind."

I turned away then, not wanting to see their expressions, only to nearly stumble when Rose slapped my back with a grin.

"See? Told you. You always have a reason."

I shot her a small annoyed look, but she was quick to bound off and lead the way back to the drilling area; the remaining Ood still unconscious and the rest dead. She was the first to grab the comm and try and contact the Doctor and Ida, as Zach hurried over and joined us as well; offering to help.

"The comms are still down. I can patch them through the central desk and boost the signal. Just give me a minute."

Once he did, she kept on and finally got a reply from Ida.

" _He's gone._ "

"What do you mean, he's gone?" Rose replied back, voice tight as something in me twisted.

 _What? Don't tell me I've gotten attached. I should know better._

" _He fell into the pit and I don't know how deep it is. Miles and miles and miles._ "

"But what do you mean, he fell?"

"He probably jumped." I murmured under my breath, earning a glare from Rose as Ida answered.

" _I couldn't stop him. He said your name._ "

Zach took the comm then. "I'm sorry. Ida? There's no way of reaching you. No cable. No back up. You're ten miles down. We can't get there."

Ida either didn't seem to care or was trying to distract herself. " _You should see this place, Zach. It's beautiful. Well, I wanted to discover things and here I am._ "

"We've got to abandon the base. I'm declaring this mission unsafe. All we can do is make sure no one ever comes here again."

" _But we'll never find out what it was._ "

"Well, maybe that's best."

" _Yeah._ "

Zach took a breath. "Officer Scott—"

" _It's alright. Just go. Good luck and… take care of Scooti._ "

"Will do." Zach said, tucking the young woman close to his side as he disconnected and turned to us. "Danny, Toby, close down the feed links. Get the retrotropes online, then get to the rocket and strap yourselves in. We're leaving."

"I'm not going." Rose declared and I narrowed my eyes.

"Rose, there's space for you and Lux."

"No, I'm going to wait for the Doctor. Just like he waited for me."

Zach hesitated, but only briefly. "I'm sorry, but he's dead."

She continued to stubbornly refuse. "You don't know him. 'Cause he's not. I'm telling you, he's not. And even if he was, how could I leave him all on his own, all the way down there? No. I'm going to stay."

"Rose." I said shortly, drawing her attention to me. "Let's go. If he's alive, then he'll come for you, and if not, then I have promised to keep you safe. Staying here will go against that."

Her eyes narrowed further as she yelled at me. "Keep me safe?! You've already attacked me once! Attacked Scooti! How is that keeping me safe?! You're a Beast just like that thing in the pit! You'll give in to the, the madness or whatever and kill us! And you don't know anything about the Doctor! You've only known him for a few days! He only took you in, because he couldn't help but take in a stray! Someone who lived as long as he does! That's all you are! Something to keep him from getting bored when everyone else dies off!"

I didn't move, didn't react to her verbal abuse, because there was nothing I could argue with. Everything she said was true, however, I owed it to the Doctor to keep her safe. After everything he did for me, that was the least I could do and maybe… maybe when this whole mess was over, I'd just give in, like she said. I'll let the madness take over, let the humans take me again. Maybe end it all myself, in my own way. It didn't really matter to me anymore. I was getting old, even for a werewolf. I was getting tired. Part of the reason I'd come back to him when he brought me to my home was because I thought that perhaps… he could offer me something more. Something to make my life worth living. For a moment, I thought I could just be free. With him gone though, I was just going to end up back down the same track I'd been on when I was trapped on Earth. And if I ended up in situations like that again, I knew I wouldn't be able to take it after I'd just experienced a taste of what it was like to be free.

I changed abruptly, ignoring the pain it brought on, and I scooped up Rose over my shoulder. She thrashed and pounded on my back, but I easily ignored it—barely feeling it, really—and turned my silver gaze to the startled Zach; who'd yet to witness me in this form.

"Let's go." I said bluntly, over the noise of Rose's shouting. "You have lost enough people and I made a promise I intend to keep, even if I must accomplish it by this means."

He nodded. "Right."

We headed down a corridor, before Toby pointed out a twitching Ood, making me growl low in my throat.

"It's the telepathic field. It's reasserting itself." Danny explained.

"Get to the rocket. Move!" Zach ordered and we picked up the pace.

I held Rose down so Danny could strap her in, but she'd nearly given up at that point and didn't fight to remove her buckle once Zach got the rocket prepped and started. She continued to glare at me as I changed back and collapsed heavily in my own seat; barely managing to get myself buckled in with the drain of energy. _I've changed back and forth too many times. Even with the moon, because it's tainted, I've been slowly poisoning myself. I'll need the Doctor to—_ I cut the thought short. _Right… No Doctor. I'm on my own for this one. Slow and painful, huh?_ I let out a small sigh as the rocket took off and with it, pulling away some more of my energy from the moon. Toby started chuckling then and my eyes shifted over to him, narrowed as Danny glared.

"What's the joke?"

"Just… we made it. We escaped. We actually did it."

"Not all of us." Rose murmured.

Zach cut in as well, adding to the slight depression in mood. "We're not out of it yet. We're still the first people in history to fly away from a black hole. Toby, read me the stats."

"Gravity funnel holding, sir. Always holding."

 _Always? What's with his wording?_

"Stats at fifty-three. Funnel stable at sixty-six point five. Hull pressure constant. Smooth as we can, sir, all the way back home. Coordinates set for planet Earth." Toby continued to smile as Rose frowned for a second.

"It doesn't make sense. We escaped, but there's a thousand ways it could've killed us. It could've ripped out the air or, I don't know, burnt us, or anything. But it let us go. Why?"

What? Like it wanted us to escape?" Scooti asked and Toby turned with a snap.

"Hey, Rose, Scooti. Do us a favor. Shut up."

"Hey!" Scooti shouted back, offended as I growled.

"Watch your tongue."

He ignored us. "Almost there. We'll be beyond the reach of the black hole in forty, thirty-nine…"

He kept counting down, until suddenly, the rocket shook.

"What happened? What was that?" Danny asked in a panic, whereas Toby said something quite different.

"What's he doing? What is he doing?!"

 _He? Could it be…_ I wished I could change, figure out what had me still on edge, but I had no room in the tiny rocket to do so. As of now, I was only human.

"We've lost the funnel. Gravity collapse!"

"What does that mean?!" Rose questioned.

"We're falling in." I said simply. "We're going to fall into the blackhole, along with the moon."

I spotted Toby then and growled as Rose, Scooti and Danny jolted back in shock at his red eyes and symbol covered face.

" **I** a **m** t **h** e **r** a **g** e!"

"It's Toby. Zach, do something!" Rose called out.

" **A** n **d** t **h** e **b** i **l** e **a** n **d t** h **e** f **e** r **o** c **i** t **y**!"

"Just do something!"

" **I** a **m** t **h** e **P** r **i** n **c** e **a** n **d** t **h** e **F** a **l** l **a** n **d** t **h** e **e** n **e** m **y**. I **a** m **t** h **e** s **i** n **a** n **d** t **h** e **f** e **a** r **a** n **d** t **h** e **d** a **r** k **n** e **s** s!"

"It's him! It's him! It's him!"

"Stay where you are. The ship's not stable!" Zach shouted as Toby suddenly breathed out fire. "What is he?! What the hell is he?!"

 _We need to get him out. He needs off the rocket, but how?!_ I looked around and spotted a bolt gun over by Scooti's feet.

"Scooti, the gun! Shoot out the window! Rose, get his seatbelt!" I called out as Toby's red eyes turned to me.

" **I** s **h** a **l** l **n** e **v** e **r** d **i** e. **T** h **e** t **h** o **u** g **h** t **o** f **m** e **i** s **f** o **r** e **v** e **r**. I **n** t **h** e **b** l **e** e **d** i **n** g **h** e **a** r **t** s **o** f **m** e **n** , i **n** t **h** e **i** r **v** a **n** i **t** y **a** n **d** o **b** s **e** s **s** i **o** n **a** n **d** l **u** s **t**. N **o** t **h** i **n** g **s** h **a** l **l** e **v** e **r** d **e** s **t** r **o** y **m** e. **N** o **t** h **i** n **g**! N **o** t **e** v **e** n **y** o **u** , w **o** l **f**. Y **o** u **w** h **o** c **o** n **s** u **m** e **d** e **v** e **r** y **t** h **i** n **g** a **r** o **u** n **d** y **o** u, **w** h **o** k **i** l **l** s **a** l **l** l **i** v **i** n **g** t **h** i **n** g **s** b **e** f **o** r **e** t **h** e **i** r **t** i **m** e. **Y** o **u** w **i** l **l** b **e** t **a** k **e** n **b** y **t** h **e** m **a** d **n** e **s** s l **i** k **e** a **l** l **t** h **e** o **t** h **e** r **s** , a **n** d **y** o **u** w **i** l **l** d **i** e **a** l **o** n **e** l **y** , p **a** i **n** f **u** l, **a** n **d** p **i** t **i** f **u** l **d** e **a** t **h**. **B** e **t** r **a** y **e** d **b** y **t** h **o** s **e** y **o** u **t** h **o** u **g** h **t** y **o** u **c** o **u** l **d** t **r** u **s** t **l** i **k** e **t** h **e** m **u** t **t** y **o** u **a** r **e**."

Rose reached over and unbuckled his seatbelt with a snarl. "Go to hell."

Scooti fired the shot into the window, shattering it and allowing Toby to be thrust out into space before Zach brought down the emergency shielding.

"You okay?" Rose asked, and I nodded stiffly, teeth grit tight as Zach spoke up once more, reminding us of the current situation.

"We've still lost the gravity funnel. We can't escape the black hole!"

"But we stopped him. That's what the Doctor would've done." Rose declared.

"Some victory. We're going in."

"The planet's lost orbit. It's falling!" Danny tacked on, before the screen he was watching, changed. "The planet's gone. I'm sorry."

Zach cursed under his breath as he gave up on the rocket. "I did my best. But hey. The first human beings to fall inside a blackhole with a werewolf. How about that? History." He said sarcastically.

Then, the rocket suddenly stopped.

"What happened?"

Zach snapped back to the monitors in shock. "We're turning. We're turning around. We're turning away!"

" _Sorry about the hijack, Captain. This is the good ship, Tardis._ " Came the Doctor's voice over the comms and Rose laughed in relief. " _Now, first thing's first. Have you got a Rose Tyler and Lux onboard?_ "

"I'm here! It's me! Oh, my God, where are you?" Rose called out happily.

" _I'm just towing you home. Gravity, schmavity. My people practically invented blackholes. Well, in fact, they did. Couple of minutes, we'll be nice and safe. Oh, and Captain? Can we do a swap? Say, if you give me Rose Tyler and Lux, I'll give you Ida Scott? How about that?_ "

"She's alive!"

"Oh my God, she's okay!" Zack and Scooti cheered.

"Yes, thank God." Danny breathed out.

" _Yeah. Bit of oxygen starvation, but she should be alright… I couldn't save the Ood. I only had time for one trip. They went down with the planet._ " He said sorrowfully, before trying to cheer up. " _Ah! Entering clear space. End of the line. Mission closed._ "

* * *

Rose rushed into the Tardis and threw her arms around the Doctor as Lux entered more slowly, avoiding looking at either of them as she slunk towards the jump-seat. The Doctor released Rose and went to the controls after changing, giving Zach and the others a farewell.

"Zach? We'll be off now. Have a good trip home. And the next time you get curious about something… Oh, what's the point. You'll just go blundering in. The human race." He grinned.

" _But Doctor, what did you find down there? That creature, what was it?_ " Ida asked.

"I don't know." The Doctor admitted, looking a bit upset, but with a hint of seriousness. "Never did decipher all of the writing, but that's good. Day I know everything? Might as well stop."

"What do you think it was? Really?" Rose asked, pushing it.

"I think we beat it. That's good enough for me."

She hesitated. "It said I was going to die in battle."

"Then, it lied. Right. Onwards, upwards." He chirped, trying to bring back a more pleasant mood. "Ida? See you again, maybe."

" _I hope so._ "

"And thanks, boys!" Rose chirped.

" _Hang on though, Doctor. You never really said. You three, who are you?_ "

"Oh, the stuff of legend." He smirked, disconnecting with the group and sending the Tardis off into the Vortex with a stretch. "Well, what a trip, eh? I assume you need a rest then, Rose, Lux?"

Rose and Lux refused to look at one another; Rose a bit more awkwardly and Lux silently staring at the door. The Doctor looked between them in concern, wondering what had happened that put them at odds with each other, but knew better than to get between a couple of fighting women.

"Right. I'm going to be up a bit longer, then I'll get some rest myself. So, feel free to just… do whatever it is you need to do."

"Cool." Rose said quickly, making a bolt for the hallway door. "I'm going to shower and hit the hay. See you in eight hours."

The Doctor waved as she left, before remembering something. "Oh. I never showed you your room, Lux."

She finally turned to him, though he noticed she looked a bit ill and he furrowed his brows.

"You alright? You don't look too good."

"I'm fine." She muttered, standing with a small grimace that concerned the Doctor even more.

"Are you hurt?"

"No. I just changed too much." She answered him, surprisingly honest. "It takes a toll on me, as I've told you before."

"Yes, well, I told you not to overdo it too. Are you sure you're alright?"

She almost looked like she wanted to say 'no', but seemed to change her mind at the last minute and nod.

"Yeah. I'm fine."

He slowly nodded, making a mental note to keep an eye on her, and began leading the way to her room down the hall.

"So, how were things while I was stuck down in the pit? Everything turned out well?"

"I kept my promise." She responded, making the Doctor rub the back of his neck.

"Thanks, I suppose, but I mean it. You and Rose were a little tense a moment ago. Thought you'd both be a bit more excited to be back on the Tardis."

She shrugged. "She wanted to stay and wait for you, but I forced her to come with us on the rocket. I kept my promise. Her liking me or hating me for my decision makes no difference."

"Ah. I'll um… I'll talk to her about it." He said simply, glad that he'd chosen to talk to Lux about it than Rose, who would have undoubtedly dodged the question. "Really though, thank you for keeping her safe."

Lux glanced at him, before looking away.

"You shouldn't be thanking me for what I… did." She murmured, so softly the Doctor thought he might have imagined it.

"What's that?"

She didn't answer though as the Doctor paused at a door.

"Ah, here it is. Your room should be in there. The Tardis should have it all set up to suit your tastes and—"

"Does it have a restroom?" She cut him off abruptly and he blinked, confused by the strange question.

"Well, yes. Most have an attached bathroom. Why are you as—"

"Sorry." She said, bolting into the room and shutting the door in his face before he could react.

"Lux?" He knocked, hoping he'd imagined the greenish tint to her skin the moment she passed him. "Lux? Is everything alright?"

The Tardis let out a groan and flashed her lights briefly, making the Doctor a bit more frantic.

"Lux! Lux, I'm coming in!" He called out, trying the knob and unsurprised to find it unlocked.

The Tardis was concerned as well.

He burst into the room, making a small grimace at how bare the room was in comparison to Rose's elaborately decorated room and even his own. A pile of pillows and blankets laid in one corner and a desk sat in another, and that was it other than the door to the closet and the bathroom, where the Doctor picked up the sound of Lux vomiting. He cringed at the sound and went over, knocking on the bathroom door as the sounds lightened up.

"Lux? I can get you something if you're not feeling well, but I need to know what's wrong. We can check in the med bay and—"

There was a small, muffled thump and the Tardis flashed her lights again as the bathroom door clicked open as well, and the Doctor wasted no time in entering.

"Lux? Lux!"

He rushed over to the woman who had collapsed on the cool tile floor, panting heavily and struggling to move.

"My God, Lux!" He breathed out himself, placing a hand on her sweat-covered forehead and grimacing at how hot to the touch she was.

He cursed under his breath and scooped her up into his arm, growing more concerned when he saw the splatter of red in the toilet that had mixed with her stomach contents. He ran to the med bay and hastily laid her down, hoping to find something, _anything_ on the scanner to help him figure out what was wrong, because Lux was in no shape to tell him herself.

"Come on, come on. What is it? What's wrong, dammit?!" He slammed a fist onto the small console as he struggled to think about what could have happened. "Think. It's not mental. She wouldn't be vomiting blood if it was, so the Beast didn't do this. So, what? The Ood? No, I doubt they could have done anything while she was in her wolf form. What else is there?"

"C-Cha…"

The Doctor whipped around to Lux, moving to her side and trying to shush her; knowing that she shouldn't even be able to speak with the shape she was in.

"Sh, sh. Don't talk, Lux. It's alright. I'll figure this out. Save your energy."

"C-Change." She still managed to breath out, clenching her eyes shut in pain as she groaned and twisted slightly under the sheets.

"Change? Something's wrong with your change between forms?" He questioned, not expecting an answer from her, but more to try and get his own mind running. "No, you were changing fine. You changed a bit more than you should have, but that would give you aches and pain, from what you told me. Nothing this bad. You had more than enough power from that moon to—" He stopped eyes widening. "The moon. What did you say about the moon? Said it wasn't a true moon. It was tainted. And you need to get your power from the moon. You were changing more than often with the power of a tainted moon. You were poisoning yourself."

Lux didn't answer, watching him through tired, half-lidded eyes as he pulled a hand through his hair.

"Christ, Lux, why didn't you say anything?" He muttered, feeling horrible for having not noticed until now that this could happen. "No. I can scold you later for this. Right now, I need to find a way to fix it. Poison, poison, poison. How do you usually combat poison? Flush it out of the system and get an antidote, but this is the _moon_. Is there an antidote? And wouldn't cleansing you of it, kill you?"

He stopped his pacing and turned to Lux, moving to her side and grabbing her hand.

"Lux, you need to help me. I don't have enough information on your species to fix this."

She stayed silent though, and he finally saw it. That tiredness. The way Lux appeared to be her actual age. How the woman looked so close to just giving up and it crushed him. And it angered him.

"Don't you dare." He said sharply, clenching her hand in his. "Don't you dare give up now, Lux." He softened slightly, ducking his head. "I would understand if I hadn't come back. If I had died down there with the Beast, then maybe, I would get it, but I'm here. I'm here and we can go anywhere; you, Rose and I. Anywhere you could imagine, doing whatever you want, but you can't give up yet. I know you're tired. I… I probably understand that better than anyone. I've been running for so long, I…" He paused, thinking about everything he'd been running from since what happened to his planet. "I've done bad things, terrible things. I've lived a long life, but… I'm living it how I want to live it. I'm going out there and doing things I never would have thought of doing. I'm living the dream because I have Rose. I have you. You both remind me of how great things could be, how I can help people, make up for all the bad I've done and replace it with something good. Don't you want to do that? Don't you want to try?" He smiled softly as he brushed some hair off her face. "I know you do. I've seen it. I've seen you trying to help those humans you say you hate so much. So, let me help you, so you can go out and be free again. Free to enjoy the universe, to love life again. Come on, Lux. Let me save you."

She let out a heavy breath, closing her eyes, and for a moment, the Doctor thought she'd stopped breathing. But then she spoke.

"C-Cleanse… I won't… die, if… given moonlight… before madness."

The Doctor's eyes widened. "You can flush the tainted power from your system, but you need pure moonlight before it gets too far. Brilliant!"

He stopped then, realizing what that entailed and looked over at her.

"How long will it take? I'll have to restrain you to keep you from…"

"T-Three days." She croaked out, opening her eyes. "I'm already… The Beast did… something…"

"What do you mean?" The Doctor asked, brows furrowed in seriousness as she shifted her eyes away.

"I… attacked Scooti… the madness… he made me weak… I couldn't—" She cut herself off with a grunt of pain, curling up slightly and the Doctor grimaced as the silver marks on her body shimmered into view before dimming again.

"Right. Three days. If you're sure, then we best move you now, and… I'm sorry." He apologized and he picked her up carefully.

He was going to have to chain her up, leave her be for three days. No food, no water, nothing. She would change and have to stay that way, testing her endurance until she would be right at the brink. It was torture, but it was the only way to help, and he wished desperately that there was another way. Wished that he wouldn't have to put her through this sort of thing after all that she'd had to endure up until now. _How many times has she had to endure this very same thing for experimental purposes?_ He thought, gritting his teeth and trying to push aside the musing as he pulled her closer to his chest and picked up his pace. _There's nothing else I can do. She agreed to try, so I have to trust her. This is the only way._


	6. Chapter 6

"Mum, it's us! We're back!" Rose called out as she and the Doctor entered her home and Jackie came out to greet them.

"Oh, I don't know why you bother with that phone. You never use it!" Jackie lightly teased as Rose grinned.

"Shut up, come here."

They hugged as the Doctor checked his watch anxiously. _Three days…_ He was distracted though, when Jackie grabbed him in a hug as well, kissing him a few times as Rose grinned.

"Oh, you lovely big fella. Oh, you're all mine."

"Just, just, just put me down!" He complained and she finally did as Rose dug through her bag and pulled out her gift for her mother.

"I've got loads of washing for you and I got you this. It's from the market on this asteroid bazaar. It's made of, uh, what's it called?"

"Bazoolium." The Doctor answered, checking his watch again.

"Bazoolium. When it gets cold, yeah, it means it's going to rain. When it's hot, it's going to be sunny. You can use it to tell the weather."

Jackie was rather excited about something else though.

"I've got a surprise for you and all."

"Oh, I get her bazoolium, she doesn't even say thanks." Rose complained as Jackie smiled back at her.

"Guess who's coming to visit? You're just in time. He'll be here at ten past. Who do you think it is?"

"I don't know." Rose shrugged.

"Oh, go on. Guess."

"No, I hate guessing. Just tell me."

"It's your grandad. Granddad Prentice. He's on his way any minute. Right. Cup of tea." She smiled, going into the kitchen, but Rose's face fell.

"She's gone mad."

"Tell me something new." The Doctor hummed, but she shook her head.

"Granddad Prentice, that's her dad. But he died, like ten years ago… Oh, my God. She's lost it. Mum? What you just said about Granddad…"

"Any second now." Jackie said with a grin as Rose tried to come up with a way to explain.

"But he passed away. His heart gave out. Do you remember?"

"Of course, I do." She nodded, the Doctor watching curiously.

"Then, how can he come back?"

"Why don't you ask him yourself? Ten past. Here he comes." She smiled as a ghostly figure appeared beside her, startling the two time travelers. "Here we are then. Dad, say hello to Rose. Ain't she grown?"

The two bolted outside to find more.

"They're everywhere!" The Doctor gaped.

"Doctor, look out!"

He turned only for one to pass through him, making him grimace and shiver as it went by unbothered. Jackie came out after them though, explaining a bit.

"They haven't got long. Midday shift only lasts a couple of minutes. They're about to fade."

"What do you mean, shift?" The Doctor questioned, having a bad feeling about these ghosts. "Since when did ghosts have shifts? Since when did shifts have ghosts? What's going on?"

"Oh, he's not happy when I know more than him, is he?" She teased as he looked around.

"But no one's running or screaming or freaking out."

"Why should we? Here we go, twelve minutes past." She murmured and the ghosts vanished as quickly as they came.

The trio headed back inside and Jackie caught the Doctor checking his watch again, finally speaking up.

"Why do you keep doing that? I thought it was just you being bored or something, but that's the third time in a few minutes!"

"Hm? Oh, sorry." He said, pulling his sleeve back down. "We've got this friend, in the Tardis. She's… Well, she's very sick, but she's got a sort of time limit. She said three days and then we can help her get better, but the three days should be up soon and she doesn't appear to be where she should be."

Jackie frowned, confused and Rose explained.

"Right, see, she's a werewolf, mum. Not like the myths, well, not completely. But we were on this moon and it made her sick, right? So, now we've got to wait until she's all tuckered out before we can get her to _her_ moon."

"A werewolf? You're joking."

The Doctor rubbed the back of his neck. "You'd think so, wouldn't you? At the rate she's going, though… it's going to take longer than three days." He shook his head. "We'll just have to get this ghost situation sorted before the time's up. When three days hits, I'll check up on her and see how she's doing. Until then, tell me about these ghosts."

* * *

The Doctor hesitated, standing in front of the door and _feeling_ the immense amount of killing intent from the other side. He looked at his watch, informing him that three days was up as of a few minutes ago, but he was concerned. He had checked up on her not long before going to take Rose home and it hadn't looked good. He wasn't completely sure what he was supposed to be looking for; what sign would tell him that it was the moment he needed to take her to the moon. Lux had told him as much as she could. In the state she'd been in though, it wasn't much. She would be weak, volatile, dangerous. The biggest hint she could give him, was a lack of communication. She would go from complete forms of thought to sentences, to jumbled words, to guttural responses. Her actions would be instinctual, not well thought out, and she would be _unstoppable_ if left to continue. It was the Doctor's job to tell where the midline was. Where rational thought turned animalistic. Because in that moment, he would need to release her and give her a clear path out the Tardis doors onto a moon. _Her_ moon. After that, it would be up to her. _She_ would need to rein in the madness and there was no guarantee that she would do it. If she didn't _want_ to be saved, then it would be impossible. He could only hope that his words before had gotten through to her.

Taking a deep breath, he steeled himself and entered the room. A low threatening growl met his ears as he looked to the wolf chained to the wall before him. Its ears were laid back against its head and the silver markings on its body stood out brightly against its black fur.

" _W-When it's close… the seals will… flicker."_

The Doctor felt concern bubble in his chest as he looked the silver marks over, seeing no difference in their shade or any fading in their brightness. Three days had passed, but she didn't look anywhere _close_ to their end goal.

"Release me." It growled, confirming his thoughts.

She was still speaking, though it wasn't quite _Lux_ who was talking. No, this was the wolf.

"You know I can't." He answered, earning another growl.

"You're just scared. All of you are always so scared of the wolf." It snarled, pulling on the chains angrily. "You _should_ be. I could tear into so easily. I could pull your limbs from your body with the smallest amount of effort, sink my teeth into your throat and bathe in your blood. You humans are nothing to me. All your wars and fighting and cruelness. You'll regret the day you tried to mess with me."

The Doctor frowned, stepping forward so that he was just a few inches from the wolf. "You don't mean that. I know you don't, Lux. You may not realize it right now, but… I _know_ you care."

"What do _you_ know about me?" It snapped and the Doctor managed a smile.

"Not much, but I know you won't give up. Not just yet, because I'm waiting for you, Lux, so I know you'll make it through this."

He reached out and place his hand on its snout, startling it before he walked out; feeling its eyes on his back. _She's getting there, but she's not close enough. Her mistake was the slip-up calling me human. Not much longer now, but I need to deal with this ghost situation first. For now, I'll give her another twelve hours._ He took a deep breath, trying to push past the image of Lux chained up in that room, before bursting into the console room with a grin.

"Allons-y!"

* * *

The wolf growled, mind conflicted.

" _I'm waiting for you, Lux."_

Its ears flicked back against its head, mind struggling to make sense of things, of the person who'd said that. Did they know him? He was human, wasn't he? Why would he say that? Nothing was making sense. The wolf struggled against the chains holding it, annoyance at being trapped making it lash out and fight against the manacles around its wrist. There was no give and the wolf sank back in frustration, before the room hummed. The wolf tipped its head up, brows furrowed as it hummed again. _Concern? Anxiousness?_ The wolf thought, before the door suddenly opened. The wolf stiffened, growling, but no one walked in. The door just stayed open. Seeing a chance, instinct kicked in, making the wolf stand and fight against its bonds with renowned passion. Roars of frustration escaped it, before the chains started to give. The wolf pulled harder, straining its muscles against the metal, until there was a loud snap. The wolf jerked forward, landing on the ground huffing and puffing at the exertion. It looked down at its hands though and felt a feral grin slip onto its face. It was free.

It bolted onto its feet, ignoring the hint of dizziness as it did, and dashed out the room and through the halls. It burst out the hallway and through the console room, the Tardis doors opening for it as it made its way outside. Silver eyes ran over the room, hearing people in the distance and the clanging of machinery. A growl escaped its throat and it turned away from the noise, making for another door. It made it through easily, but was growing annoyed again. It didn't want to be trapped behind walls. It wanted to be _outside_. It wanted the wind in its fur, the scents of grass, the freedom to run and howl and fight and kill. Something clattered to the ground and silver eyes snapped over to the person in the white coat who'd just turned the corner and spotted the giant wolf. The young man shook, legs stumbling backwards before he bolted; the wolf on his tail.

The wolf grabbed the young man, snarling as he brought him up to its mouth, but as the man cried and struggled in its grip, the wolf paused. Its brows furrowed and its mouth closed. Something was wrong. The human reminded it of something, of someone. A brief flash of a blonde, smiling face passed through its mind before it shook its head and dropped the man. The man wailed and ran away as the wolf tried to get its bearings. What it didn't know, was that the man was sounding the alarm.

* * *

" _Yvonne? I think you should see this_." A voice chimed from the laptop nearby, making Yvonne turn to it as the Doctor raised a brow; lounging back in his chair. " _We've got a visitor. We don't know who she is, but funnily enough, she arrived at the same time as the Doctor._ "

Yvonne turned the computer around to show the Doctor an image of her worker, Rajesh, standing beside Rose.

"She one of yours?"

"Never seen her before in my life." The Doctor tried, but Yvonne didn't believe him for a moment.

"Good. Then, we can have her shot."

"Oh, alright then. It was worth a try. That's… That's Rose Tyler."

" _Sorry. Hello._ " Rose waved sheepishly.

"Well, if that's Rose Tyler, who's she?" Yvonne asked, pointing to Jackie beside the Doctor.

"I'm her mother." Jackie answered proudly.

Yvonne gave the Doctor a look. "Oh, you travel with her mother?"

"He kidnapped me." Jackie argued as the Doctor grimaced.

"Please, when Torchwood comes to write my complete history, don't tell people I travelled through time and space with her mother."

Jackie went to get upset with him for that comment, but a young man suddenly burst through a door, panting and out of breath.

"T-There… T-There's a-a-a…"

Yvonne sighed. "Please, speak properly, Turner."

He nodded, looking over his shoulder as he shook and wrung his hands together. "T-There's a-a wolf. A-A huge wolf."

Yvonne frowned, not noticing the Doctor pale and check his watch. _It's too soon. How the hell did she get out? It's impossible, unless the Tardis just… but why? Oh, this is_ not _good._

"A wolf, Turner?"

He nodded frantically. "A-A huge, black wolf! I swear! I-It picked me up and I-I thought—"

A loud howl suddenly rang out and Yvonne's eyes widened, before she picked up a walkie nearby.

"Security, be on the lookout for a—"

"Wait." The Doctor said, sighing loudly and running a hand down his face. "That's… She's also my companion."

Yvonne raised a brow, pausing on her order. "Excuse me?"

"She's a werewolf. I don't know how she got out of the Tardis, but _don't_ let anyone confront her. She's not in the right frame of mind right now, but if you _dare_ harm her, then you'll have to deal with me."

Yvonne slowly brought the walkie back up. "Security, keep an eye out for a werewolf, but capture it. Don't kill it." She turned to the Doctor. "A werewolf?"

He shrugged as Jackie gave him a look.

"You aren't kidding? You really _do_ have a werewolf?"

The Doctor went to answer her, but there was a loud clattering, drawing Yvonne's attention to the people outside her office.

"Excuse me? Everyone? I thought I said stop the Ghost Shift. Who started the program?" She asked, but no one was listening and the levers started to move. "But I ordered you to stop! Who's doing that? Right, step away from the monitors, everyone. Gareth, Addy, stop what you're doing, right now. Matt, step away from your desk. That's an order! Stop the levers! Andrew!"

A scientist tried to grab the lever, but it wasn't budging.

"Stop the levers!"

The Doctor, curious, headed over to one of the women typing. "What's she doing?"

Yvonne went over as well. "Addy, step away from the desk. Listen to me. Step away from the desk."

"She can't hear you." The Doctor realized. "They're overriding the system. We're going into Ghost Shift." He pulled out his sonic and scanned the young woman. "It's the ear piece. It's controlling them. I've seen this before. Sorry. I'm so sorry." He apologized before sonicking the earpiece, making Addy let out a silent scream before she collapsed alongside the others in the room.

"What happened? What did you just do?" Yvonne asked.

"They're dead." He stated, making Jackie look at him in shock.

"You killed them."

"Oh, someone else did that long before I got here." He replied.

"But you killed them!"

"Jackie, I haven't got time for this." He said shortly as Yvonne reached for Addy.

"What are those earpieces?"

"Don't." The Doctor warned.

"But they're standard comms devices. How does it control them?"

"Trust me, leave them alone."

"But what are they?" She pulled it off Addy and immediately dropped it in disgust as brain matter was pulled out with it. "Oh, God. It goes inside their brain."

The Doctor tried to brush it off, knowing they had bigger problems to deal with. "What about the Ghost Shift?"

Yvonne checked the computer. "Ninety percent there and still running. Can't you stop it?"

"They're still controlling it. They've hijacked the system."

"Who's they?"

"It might be a remote transmitter, but it's got to be close by. I can trace it. Jackie, stay here!" He commanded, hurrying out of the office with Yvonne on his heels. "And if you see a werewolf, hide. Don't run, just hide."

Yvonne spotted a few security personnel and got them to join her and the Doctor as he followed his sonic, leading them towards an area under renovation.

"What's down here?" The Doctor asked.

"I don't… I don't know. I think it's building work. It's just renovations."

"You should go back." He told her, but she straightened proudly.

"Think again." She and the soldiers followed him through the plastic curtain until he stopped. "What is it? What's down here?"

"Ear pieces, ear pods. This world's colliding with another and I think I know which one."

"What are they?" Yvonne asked as a figure appeared on the other side of another plastic curtain.

"They came through first, the advanced guard." He muttered, before the figure pushed the curtain aside to reveal their worst nightmare. "Cybermen!"

The soldiers fire off their shots, only to be killed; leaving the Doctor and Yvonne to get captured by the Cybermen and led back to the office.

"Get away from the machines! Do what they say, don't fight them!" The Doctor shouted at the personnel, but the Cybermen didn't give them a chance to obey the orders before they killed them.

"What are they?" Jackie asked, quickly moving to his side.

"We are the Cybermen. The Ghost Shift will be increased to one hundred percent." A Cyberman announced as the levers moved and the once-ghosts began to take on their true form as Cybermen.

"Here come the ghosts." The Doctor murmured.

"But these Cybermen, what've they got to do with the ghosts?" Jackie asked softly.

"Do you never listen? A footprint doesn't look like a boot. They're Cybermen. All of the ghosts are Cybermen. Millions of them, right across the world."

Yvonne gaped in shock. "They're invading the whole planet."

"It's not an invasion. It's too late for that. It's a victory." The Doctor said seriously, before frowning. "But I don't understand. The Cybermen don't have the technology to build a Void Ship. That's way beyond you." He said, turning to the Cybermen. "How did you create that sphere?"

"The sphere is not ours." It replied.

"What?"

"The sphere broke down the barriers between worlds. We only followed. Its origin is unknown."

"Then, what's inside it?"

"Rose is down there…" Jackie breathed out and the Doctor grimaced.

"Worse yet, Lux is roaming around. A werewolf, Cybermen… I hate to say it, but… I don't think this could get much worse."

"What's down there?" Jackie asked him. "She was in that room with the sphere. What's happened to her?"

"I don't know." He said shortly as Jackie began to cry and he softened his tone. "I'll find her. I brought you here, I'll get you both out. You and your daughter. Jackie, look at me. Look at me." He commanded. "I promise you. I give you my word."

The Cyberman announced itself as the world leader then, but the people outside didn't listen to its commands as the Doctor watched with his 3D glasses for a moment before they were led to a window where they could see the destruction outside.

"I ordered surrender." The Cyberleader said in confusion.

"They're not taking instructions. Don't you understand? You're on every street, you're in their homes, you've got their children! Of course, they're going to fight." The Doctor snapped at it before it made an announcement.

"Scans detect unknown technology active within Sphere chamber."

"Cybermen will investigate." Another one said.

"Units 10-6-5 and 10-6-6 will investigate Sphere Chamber."

"We obey." The two announced, leaving and the Cyberleader turned away.

"Units open visual link." It commanded and an image appeared on Yvonne's laptop. "Visual link established.

On the screen, two Cybermen faced a lone Dalek, making the Doctor stiffen.

" _Identify yourselves!_ " The Dalek screeched as the Cybermen countered.

" _You will identify first._ "

" _State your identity._ "

" _You will identify first._ "

" _Identify!_ "

The Doctor's frown deepened as he thought he spotted something dark shift behind the Dalek for a minute.

" _Daleks do not take orders._ "

" _You have identified as Daleks._ " The Cybermen managed to catch as the Dalek figured things out as well.

" _Outline resembles the inferior species known as Cybermen._ "

Jackie spoke quietly to the Doctor. "Rose said about the Daleks. She was terrified of them. What have they done to her, Doctor? Is she dead?"

"Phone." He demanded from her, making her furrow her brows.

"What?"

"Phone!" He hissed and she handed it over as he phoned Rose. "She's answered. She's alive. Why haven't they killed her?"

"Well, don't complain!" Jackie snapped as the Doctor tried to figure it out.

"They must need her for something." He mused, catching something a Dalek said on screen.

" _We must protect the Genesis Ark._ "

"Genesis Ark?"

" _Our species are similar, though your design is inelegant._ " A Cyberman informed the Dalek.

" _Daleks have no concept of elegance._ "

" _This is obvious, but consider, our technologies are compatible. Cybermen plus Daleks. Together we could upgrade the universe._ "

The Doctor paled, the mere idea making him sick to the stomach.

" _You propose an alliance?_ "

" _This is correct._ "

" _Request denied._ "

The Cybermen raised their weapons. " _Hostile elements will be deleted._ "

They shot at the Dalek, but it easily exterminated the both of them, making the Cyberleader speak.

"Open visual link." It commanded, speaking directly to the leader of the Daleks. "Daleks, be warned. You have declared war upon the Cybermen."

" _This is not war. This is pest control._ " The Dalek replied.

"We have five million Cybermen. How many are you _?_ "

" _Four._ "

"You would destroy the Cybermen with four Daleks?"

" _We would destroy the Cybermen with_ one _Dalek._ " It corrected. " _You are only superior in one respect._ "

"What is that?"

" _You are better at dying. Raise communications barrier!_ "

The link was cut off and the Cyberleader began dishing out commands.

"Quarantine the Sphere chamber. Start emergency upgrading. Begin with these personnel."

A Cyberman grabbed Yvonne and Jackie, making them shout.

"No, you can't do this! We surrendered! We surrendered!"

The Cyberleader turned to the Doctor though. "This one. His increased adrenaline suggests that he has vital Dalek information."

Jackie hardly cared as she struggled. "Stop them! I don't want to go! You promised me! You gave me your word!"

The Doctor tried his best. "I demand you leave that woman alone! I won't help you if you hurt her. Jackie, don't fight. I'll think of something."

* * *

The wolf stopped, sniffing the air and shifting its head. It could smell it. Blood. There was blood somewhere. It was hunting now, searching for something to sink its teeth into, something to _fight_. Its muscles twitched in anticipation and it quickly rushed down the hall to where the smell came from, ears soon picking up loud screaming that only made its heart beat faster in its ears as it grew ever closer. Then, it found it. It burst through plastic covering, ears flicking back at the sight of metal men and not even seeing the blonde woman nearby as they turned to it.

"Identify." A Cyberman commanded, but the wolf growled; the voice of the robot grating on its sensitive ears. "You will identify or you will be deleted."

The Cyberman raised its arm threateningly and the wolf growled, not taking a chance before it twisted the Cyberman's arm off.

"Alert! Alert! Hostile actions in process! Delete! Delete!"

A second Cyberman jabbed at the wolf's side, earning a yelp before the angered creature ripped the head off of it and launched itself at another one. Seeing her chance, Jackie made a dash for it, trembling in fear. Her phone went off as she hurried down the stairs, hearing loud stomping chasing after her.

" _Jackie, you're alive. Listen—_ " The Doctor started, but Jackie cut him off in her panic.

"They tried to download me but I ran away! A-And there was this wolf! It was huge, but it attacked them a-and I think it's chasing me!"

" _Sh! Listen, tell me. Where are you?_ " He asked, knowing that if Lux was chasing her, then he would need to get to her in a hurry.

"I don't know. Staircase."

" _Yeah. Which one? Is there any sort of sign? Anything to identify it?_ "

"Yes. A fire extinguisher!"

" _Yeah, that helps…_ " He muttered with a roll of his eyes.

"Oh, wait a minute. It says N3." Jackie answered, spotting the sign.

" _North corner, staircase three. Just get away from Lux, Jackie. Hide if you can. Look for a place where she won't be able to smell you. We're trying our best._ "

"No, don't leave me." She cried, but he grimaced.

"I've got to go. I'm sorry." He said, putting the phone down and turning to Pete; who'd joined him with a number of other men from the parallel world he'd visited not too long ago. "Jacqueline Andrea Suzette Tyler."

Pete frowned. "She's not my wife."

"I was at the wedding. You got her name wrong." He smirked, turning to the young blonde in the room. "Now then, Jakey boy, if I can open up the bonding chamber on this thing, it'll work on polycarbite."

"What's polycarbite?"

"Skin of a Dalek."

After some careful planning and some skillful adjustments, the Doctor and co. met up with the Cybermen to make a deal and managed to make it down to the Sphere Chamber just in time.

"Oh no, hold on. Wait a minute." He called out, wearing his 3D glasses as he stopped a Dalek from killing Rose.

"Alert, alert. You are the Doctor." The Dalek leader announced as another spoke up.

"Sensors report he is unarmed."

"That's me. Always." He grinned at them.

"Then, you are powerless."

"Not me. Never. How are you?" He asked Rose, who smiled.

"Oh, same old. You know."

"Good. And Mickoty McMickey! Nice to see you!" He smiled broadly at Mickey, who smiled back.

"And you, boss."

"Social interaction will cease!" A Dalek commanded as the Dalek leader spoke.

"How did you survive the Time War?"

"By fighting. On the front line. I was there at the fall of Arcadia. Someday I might even come to terms with that. But you lot ran away!" He mocked them.

"We had to survive."

"The last four Daleks in existence. So, what's so special about you?"

"Doctor." Rose spoke up. "They've got names. I mean, Daleks don't have names, do they? One of them said they—"

"I am Dalek Thay." A Dalek cut her off as the others continued.

"Dalek Sek."

"Dalek Jast."

"Dalek Caan."

"So, that's it!" The Doctor smiled, understanding dawning on him. "The Cult of Skaro. I thought you were just a legend."

"Who are they?" Rose asked.

"A secret order above and beyond the Emperor himself. Their job was to imagine, think as the enemy thinks. Even dared to have names. All to find new ways of killing."

"But that thing, they said it was yours." Mickey announced, drawing the Doctor's attention to the container in the center of the room. "I mean, Time Lords. They built it. What does it do?"

"I don't know. Never seen it before."

Rose frowned. "But it's Time Lord."

"Both sides had secrets." The Doctor explained, looking to Dalek Sek, the leader. "What is it? What have you done?"

"Time Lord science will restore Dalek supremacy."

"What does that mean? What sort of Time Lord science? What do you mean?"

Rose cut in. "They said one touch from a time traveler will wake it up."

"Technology using the one thing a Dalek can't do. Touch. Sealed inside your casing. Not feeling anything ever, from birth to death, locked inside a cold metal cage. Completely alone. That explains your voice. No wonder you _scream_." The Doctor snarled at the Dalek, who shouted back.

"The Doctor will open the Ark!"

"The Doctor will not." He laughed.

"You have no way of resisting."

"Well, you got me there. Although, there is always this." He pulled out his sonic.

"A sonic probe?"

"That's screwdriver." The Doctor corrected.

"It is harmless."

"Oh, yes. Harmless is just the word. That's why I like it. Doesn't kill, doesn't wound, doesn't maim. But I'll tell you what it does do. It is very good at opening doors."

He went to use it, but a door burst open before he could and he blinked at the large snarling wolf that had forced its way in.

"Or there's that." He muttered, using the sonic and sending in the Cybermen and others who shot at the Daleks. "Don't shoot at the werewolf! Rose, get out!"

She hurried over, stumbling only for Pete to help her up and get her out as the wolf joined in the fighting; ripping Cybermen apart and managing to break off a Dalek's gun.

"Mickey, come on!" Rose shouted from the door as the wolf shifted and spotted them as well.

Mickey stumbled, hissing as his hand touched the Genesis Ark only to look up at the snarling face of the wolf.

"L-Lux? Lux, it's me. It's Mickey!"

"Run, Mickey!" The Doctor shouted, not knowing what Lux would do in this state. "She doesn't understand! She's running on pure instinct! Just go!"

The wolf leaned down further, breath brushing over the paralyzed Mickey, before it let out a loud cry of pain and whipped its head around to the Dalek that had shot its side. It rushed the creature, ripping off its eyestalk and giving Mickey the chance to bolt for the door. The Doctor hustled him outside, giving one last look at the wolf before following after him.

"Jake, check the stairwell. The rest of you, come on!" He called out, hoping Lux got out alright as Mickey panicked.

"I just fell. I didn't mean it!"

"Mickey, without us, they'd have opened it by force. To do that, they'd have blown up the sun. You've done us a favor. Now, run!" The Doctor explained, ducking as there was a loud bang from not far behind them. "Oh, please tell me that was Lux."

"But she's… she's losing it, isn't she?" Rose questioned.

"Well, yes, but better her than Daleks." He offered, hearing Cybermen in the distance.

"You will be upgraded."

"No, but you can't! Please!" Jackie's voice followed and they rounded the corner just in time to see the wolf burst through a wall.

The Cybermen turned to it, raising their arms, but the wolf made quick work of them before looking to Jackie.

"Jackie, just don't move!" The Doctor called out to her as Pete raised his gun and he abruptly yanked it down. "No! If you shoot, she'll kill us!"

"She'll kill _her_ if I don't!" Pete argued, but the Doctor kept and arm out.

"Just… Just give me a chance. I might be able to get through to her." He said and Pete narrowed his eyes, but didn't raise his gun as the Doctor took a few steps towards the wolf, trying to get its attention. "Lux! Lux, look over here! Look, it's me! It's the Doctor!"

The wolf's ears flicked back and it turned its head towards him with a low growl, lips upturned in a snarl.

"Lux, it's alright. You remember me, don't you?" He tried, keeping his hands out peacefully as the wolf continued to growl threateningly. "I'm the Doctor and Rose, you remember Rose and Mickey, don't you?"

The wolf didn't react, keeping its eyes locked on him as he spoke to the people behind him.

"This isn't good. She's not reacting, not speaking. I think this is her limit."

"What do you mean?" Rose whispered, trying not to draw attention to herself.

"I told you. The moon we were on before was poisoning her every time she changed into this form. She was very sick and the only way to keep her alive was to isolate her in this form and get her to the brink of madness before taking her to get energy from a pure moon. She mentioned some of the signs that would let me know when she would be ready, but she's displaying them now. She wasn't even supposed to get off the Tardis, but I think the ship let her go for some reason. This means that getting her back on and to her moon is going to be a million times harder." He explained, grimacing. "The fact that she's not answering me if one of the big giveaways. The closer she gets to succumbing to the madness, the more she'll rely on instinct instead of thought processes. She's not answering, because instinct demands she doesn't. She's not reacting to my words, because instinct demands she ignores them in favor of watching my every move in case of threat. We have to distract her."

"With _what_?" Pete hissed, concerned for Jackie.

"Well, the only thing I can think of. She'll hate me for it later though, if she remembers." He muttered.

"What do you mean?" Rose asked and he reached into his pocket slowly being bringing something to his mouth.

The wolf wailed abruptly, covering its ears and squirming as Pete grabbed Jackie and pulled her along; the group leaving as the wolf ran the opposite direction.

"What _was_ that?!" Mickey asked in shock and the Doctor held up the small silver object.

"Dog whistle. Didn't think it'd work, but seems we got lucky."

Rose laughed. "You're impossible."

"Don't you know it."

* * *

The wolf was beginning to get tired, wear down, grow exhausted. Something was wrong. It had no energy. There was so little of it that it had started to feel its wounds, its aches and pains. Shots from the Cybermen, from the Daleks, had started to burn, to throb, to sting. It was growing tired of fighting, not because it wasn't entertaining anymore, but because exhaustion was creeping in. _Where's the moon? Where's my moon?_ A whine escaped it as it lumbered through the halls, limping slightly and swaying. _Where's the others? Where's my pack? Why can't I feel anyone? Where are they? How do I find them? I miss them._ It stumbled into a room, startling the only person in there. The Doctor looked at the wolf with wide eyes, hesitantly moving away from the keyboard of the terminal he was using to avoid drawing its attention to him. Slowly, he put on his 3D glasses and grimaced. The wolf was covered in void stuff as well. He hadn't thought through his little plan with her included. He'd made an error, one that he wasn't sure he could fix if Lux wasn't in the right frame of mind.

Suddenly, there was a flash and Rose appeared, not realizing what she'd done when she spoke.

"I think this is the 'on' switch."

There was a low growl and they both whipped around to the wolf as it flicked its ears back threateningly, but didn't attack them. The Doctor frowned, not quite understanding what was stopping it, until he pulled out his sonic and scanned it.

"She's exhausted." He explained to Rose, who shot him a worried look. "It's good for us, but not for much longer. She probably won't attack unless threatened, but keep it up, and she'll give in to the madness and we'll lose her for good." He ran a hand through his hair with a groan. "Oh, she picked a right time to get out of the Tardis."

"So… we'll be alright?"

He looked to her, grabbing her by the shoulders seriously. "We might be safe from her for now, but once the breach collapses, that's it. You will never be able to see your mother again. Your own _mother_."

Rose closed her eyes briefly, taking a deep breath. "I made my choice a long time ago and I'm never going to leave you. So, what can I do to help?"

The Doctor hesitated, but felt almost happy that she'd chosen to stay and gestured to a terminal. "Those coordinates over there. Set them all at six and hurry up."

"We've got Cybermen on the way up." She announced a moment later, the Doctor glancing over his shoulder at the wolf; who'd since sank to the floor, panting.

"How many floors down?"

"Just one."

The Doctor grimaced, pacing for a moment and running a hand through his hair, before looking at the wolf.

"Doctor?" Rose asked, but he held a hand out towards her and steadily approached the creature.

"Lux? Lux, can you hear me?"

The wolf cracked tired eyes open and growled, but didn't shift from its position leaning up against the wall.

"Lux, I want to help you. Do you understand? I can get you out of here, if you want, but I'm going to need you to help us. If the Cybermen come, could you take care of them? I know you're tired and hurt, but we can't do this on our own."

The wolf watched him and for a moment, he thought he saw a hint of the old Lux in there, before the wolf closed its eyes again with a long huff of air. He wasn't sure if it was a response, but the wolf closing its eyes despite how close he was undoubtedly meant that _he_ —at least—was no longer a threat. He could only hope it meant it would help, but for now, he needed to get the breach open. He moved back to the terminal and grinned as the computer announced being operational; making Rose smile as well.

"That's more like it. Bit of a smile. The old team."

"Hope and Glory, Mutt and Jeff, Shiver and Shake."

"Which one's Shiver?"

"Oh, I'm Shake." He joked, glad to see that the threat of Cybermen were gone and he passed Rose a Magnaclamp before turning to the wolf. "Lux, you'll need to hold onto something or you'll be pulled through the breach."

The wolf didn't seem to listen and the Doctor feared it wouldn't bother, but he caught sight of its arm snaked around a pillar and hoped that would be enough.

"Press the red button." He told Rose. "When it starts, just hold on tight. Shouldn't be too bad for us, but the Daleks and the Cybermen are steeped in Void stuff. Are you ready?"

Rose looked to the window though, and paled. "So are they."

The Daleks hovered just outside the window and the Doctor took no chances.

"Let's do it!"

The breach opened and a bright light shinned through it as the Daleks began to screech; the Doctor laughing manically.

"The breach is open! Into the Void! Ha!"

It worked for a bit, but then a lever on Rose's side shifted, going offline. Desperate, she released her own Magnaclamp and grabbed a hold of it, trying to pull it into an upright position. She barely managed, but then the pull from the breach grew stronger, pulling her up and off her feet.

"Rose, hold on! Hold on!" The Doctor shouted frantically, trying to see if there was a way for him to get to her.

But the risk was too great. If he tried, he'd get sucked into the breach before even reaching her. Rose slipped then, looking at him desperately before something black shifted. The Doctor's eyes went wide as the wolf grabbed a hold of the Magnaclamp and reached out for Rose.

"R… Rose!" It managed to call out and she tried to grab a hold of it, grasping at the black and silver fur, but she couldn't get a grip.

Her hands slipped and the Doctor called after her just before she was grabbed by Pete and taken to the parallel universe. The breach closed and the wolf collapsed on the ground, panting as the Doctor slowly walked to the wall where the breach had been and pressed his ear to it; hoping to just hear her voice on the other side. He was met with silence and begrudgingly pulled away, turning around and heading to the wolf as it quivered on the ground.

"Are you alright, Lux?" He managed to ask, placing a hand on its arm.

A whine escaped it and he was surprised to see tears sliding down its snout as it pressed its forehead to the ground. He was confused. Lux had a bad reaction when Reinette died because she'd allowed the French woman to get close to her, but she hadn't appeared to be nearly as close to Rose, so why was she so upset? He knew why _he_ was upset, but for someone like Lux, it didn't make sense. It was then, that he noticed something on the edge of his consciousness. Someone was crying out, desperately, and that someone was Lux.

 _They're gone! My pack, my moon, my home! Where are they?! Why are they gone?! What do I do?! Bring them back! I don't want to be alone! Don't make me live alone! Bring them back! I want them back!_

She was nearing the brink. Already, she had seemed to forget who he was and who Rose was, but now she was beginning to lose control over her mentality and her sense of time. She had regressed back to when she'd first ended up on Earth, when she'd first realized that she was the only one left, that she was alone. If she went any further, if she walked any closer to the line dividing sane from insane, she would completely lose herself to those emotions. The Doctor wasn't about to lose a second companion. Not today.

"Lux, come on. Get up, Lux. Lux, get up!" He snapped, tugging on the wolf's arm and eventually managing to coax the mourning, half-conscious creature to its feet.

He somehow managed to lead it back to the Tardis and to even get it inside, before he took off. He set the ship up to find a place where he might be able to get into contact with Rose, but first he had to do something risky. He landed the ship and pulled the wolf back out, leading her to an open grassy field in full view of the moon. It sagged in almost relief, collapsing to its knees, but the Doctor was running out of time. He only had a few moments left, so he turned back to his ship and left. _I'm sorry, Lux. I'll be back. I just… I can't let this chance get away from me._ He mentally apologized as he left her there and rushed to get the ship to where it needed to be to speak to Rose one last time.

* * *

My head hurt. No, it ached, terribly. My entire body did, actually, and I couldn't remember why. I shifted with a groan, grimacing and shaking my head to try and clear it of the fog, clasping my hands in the grass. I inhaled deeply, cringing at the pain the simple movement sent through my body, and lightly pushing myself onto my feet. Tipping my head back, I looked up at the full moon and felt my heart stop. I recognized it. _More_ than recognized it, I'd grown up with it.

"No." I breathed out, standing and holding my injured side as I hastily looked around the grassy field in sudden panic and fear. "No, he can't. He can't have left me here. Not again. If the patrols are out, then—"

A howl rang out and my ears flicked back as I fought the natural instinct to reply. _Damn. They're close! I need to get out of the open. I need…_ I swallowed back the abrupt sense of betrayal that I had from the Doctor apparently abandoning me on my home planet again, and turned to the nearby trees. _I need to hide. For now, I need to make myself scarce and hope that the moron Doctor comes back for me_ without _getting caught himself._ I shifted onto all fours and began to run, hearing drumming in the distance as well. _During a moon festival too. Not good. Security will be boosted, there will be ongoing hunts, and they'll be searching for the rogues. If I get caught… Dear God, if I get caught in this shape, I won't last a week. What the hell was he thinking, bringing me here?!_

Some time passed as I hid out in the forest, dripping after having waded through a stream to try and cover my scent. The patrol I had heard earlier were suspicious now. They had probably caught wind of me and were trying to figure out whether I was a rogue or just a stray from the festival who had wandered too far. _They won't recognize the scent, so they'll probably track it down as far as they can while calling for reinforcements when they realize I'm a fully changed wolf and not just a youngling. Oh, how do I get out of this mess and where the hell is the Doctor?_ I had remembered what had happened up to a point, so I understood the general idea of why I was back on my planet, though not why said Doctor was nowhere to be found. _And I don't remember much after the first day or so in confinement. After that, everything is a bit foggy. I can't remember how I got these injuries either. Something must have happened while I was lost._ _Something…_

" _Lux? Lux, can you hear me?"_

" _You remember me, don't you?"_

" _It's the Doctor!"_

" _I want to help you."_

" _R… Rose!"_

A howl rang out, much closer now and I growled lowly in my throat, too low for them to hear despite how close they were. That being said, someone _else_ heard, making me whip around to the sound of a small whimper. My snarl vanished in an instant at the two younglings who had incidentally stumbled across me; huddled together and shaking slightly. I must have looked terrifying to them, but I knew I would be unable to change back while the moon was out and with how weak I was. I did what I could though, lowering my hackles and relaxing into a less threatening stance; giving one last look over my shoulder for the patrol before giving them my attention.

"Apologies." I muttered, hoping that by speaking they'd understand that I wasn't a rogue and that they'd stay quiet. "You startled me."

The braver of the two took a small step forward; keeping the other tucked behind him protectively.

"W-What are you doing here?" He asked, looking me over with a small frown as I relished in my native tongue for the first time in a long time. "Is the patrol looking for you?"

I winced slightly, looking over my shoulder again, having never been a good liar when it came to dealing with younglings. "Possibly."

"A-Are you a r-rogue?" The more skittish of the two questioned and I raised a brow at him.

"Would I be speaking with you if I was?"

He flinched back, but didn't answer and I realized they hadn't been told much about those who lost themselves to madness.

"Rogues have no markings." I clarified for them, gesturing to the silver that trailed along my body. "And they don't speak much. A rogue would have killed you without a thought, whereas I am willing to speak with you, understand?"

They both nodded, seeming a little more comfortable, but the braver one wasn't entirely thrown off track.

"So, why are the patrol after you?"

 _He would be a good fit for a change, though the other seems too skittish._ I pushed the thought from my head.

"Because I'm not at the moon festival, perhaps." I answered, thinking up a way to get them less interested in me and more interested in leave. "Much like you two. How do I know they're not after you?"

He puffed out his chest with a confident, toothy grin. "Because we're too clever to get caught! No one even knows we left!"

That brought up memories of my brother and I running through the forest during festivals, pretending we were changed wolves and running by our own rules. _Oh, brother, how I miss those times._

"You should go before they catch us." I suggested. "I'll go one way and you two can go another, that way they can't get us easily."

He nodded, accepting my plan without noticing that I was easily twisting things to my favor. He took his friend's hand and hurried off as I went the opposite way, hoping that the patrol would go after the noisier younglings instead of my silent self. Something stopped me though. There was a scent, a foul scent that brushed my nose. I was about to ignore it, when I heard the patrol howl and abruptly get cut off. _That howl… Reinforcements. They found a rogue._ My ears flicked back and I told myself that this was my chance to get out of there, but then I heard cries. Cries of those two younglings.

All thoughts fled my mind as my brother's face flickered into my memory for the first time since I'd been trapped on Earth, and I bolted for the noises of fighting. I burst through the clearing, ramming my shoulder into the grey and white rogue before it had a chance to harm the two cowering younglings.

"Run!" I snapped at them as the rogue lunged back at me.

I threw the wolf back, growling at it as it shook its head and paced, searching for an opening. Already, I saw a patrol bleeding behind it up against a tree and one of the younglings had a wound on its leg, but I tried to keep my focus on the rogue across from me. I had no mental connection with it, so I was unable to converse with it like I had the other back with the Queen, but wolves could understand each other at the basic level. We could see when the other was going to make a move and with enough training, we could predict exactly what the other was going to do. The problem was, madness made things more unpredictable. Now, the wolf was desperate and depending on how long they'd been this way, even a heavily landed hit could have potentially no effect. Their sense of pain was pushed to the back of their minds and I'd heard horror stories of just how long a rogue could go with damage that would have normally killed a werewolf. I'd dealt with rogues before. Everyone had to go through patrol before they were even considered for transport out. That had been decades ago though. I hadn't fought a werewolf other than my comrade since I was a newly changed wolf. I had gotten used to peace, to human fighting and now, I was weak, injured, still recovering from being poisoned. _But I won't let them die._

I snarled, running at the rogue and fighting with it before it could get a chance to attack itself. I used everything I could remember about dealing with them from the academy. I remembered all of my training and I focused on solely the rogue. I didn't hear the approaching howls from reinforcements, or the two younglings whimpering in the edge of our makeshift fighting ring of trees. I didn't hear the Tardis landing in the distance. Blood filled my jaws as I sank my teeth into the arm of my opponent and it dripped down my chest as the rogue swiped back. I was tripped though, letting out a roar of pain when the rogue grabbed my arm in its jaws before I kicked it off. I pushed myself up from off the ground, still snarling, but the rogue caught movement out of the corner of its eyes. The younglings hadn't run like I'd told them. The braver of the two was barely getting the other onto his feet. The rogue took the chance, seeing injured prey as an easy target, but I jumped in the way.

I grabbed the two younglings with one arm and grimaced when the rogue slammed heavily into my injured side; sinking its claws into my upper leg. I slammed a fist onto its head to get it to release me and proceeded to stomp its face into the ground before jumping back and falling to a knee as my leg buckled beneath me. I set the younglings down snapping at them.

"Go! Quickly! I can't fight him and protect you! Run!"

They nodded, helping each other to get moving just as the rogue recovered and threw itself back at me. I stood in preparation, knowing I couldn't fight for much long with my injuries, when a shot of red flashed across and tackled the rogue from the sky. Two more blurs grabbed the rogue and I relaxed slightly as they managed to pin him down and get him restrained. I had forgotten that I too, had been running from the patrol. A fourth wolf emerged from the forest, checking on the downed patrol member before barking out orders to the other three, then turning to me. It was the leader of their unit and I stiffened as she approached me, sniffing around me with narrowed blue eyes to match her light grey fur.

"I don't recognize your scent." She said harshly, making my ears flick back as I remembered that I hadn't wanted to get caught.

"Two younglings went off to the East." I said back, voice monotone. "One was injured by the rogue. I simply assisted to keep them safe."

"Protocol says any unidentified wolves are to come with us." She demanded, tipping her head slightly. "Or would you rather attempt to run?" She leaned in closer with a lick of her lips. "It would be an easy task to hunt you down like this."

I lifted my lips in a threatening snarl, standing tall despite my injuries. "Don't talk down to me, you _runt_. Even like this, I could easily handle your pack of younglings."

Her ears flicked back uncertainly at my authority, but her flicking tail said she wasn't about to back down.

"You _will_ come, or we will force you." She growled as I did the same in return, challengingly.

I knew I was outnumbered and outmatched, but she was outranked and she seemed to know it. I was hoping I could bluff my way into leaving without trouble, but I was never that lucky. Yet another wolf walked into the small clearing. Word had spread and with it, came an authority figure I recognized; one who recognized _me_.

"What is—" Dark brown eyes landed on me and drew my attention away from the young wolf in front of me and to him. "You… That's impossible."

My ears laid back flat against my head as I took a small step back, tail tucking underneath me. "Chief…"

* * *

The Doctor headed out of the Tardis and looked around, frowning when he caught no sight of Lux. _I left her right here and I landed only an hour or so after I dropped her off. Did she recover that quickly?_ He heard howling then and felt concern grow in him. _That's not good. That was really close. Didn't she say something about patrols before?_ He took a few steps back towards the Tardis and turned around, only to run into a furry chest. Looking up, he gulped at the sight of the large black and grey wolf towering over him.

"Um, hello. I was looking for my friend. You haven't seen her, have you? She's about your height, black fur, silver marks, goes by Lux?" He tried, earning a growl from the wolf as it easily picked him up.

"You're trespassing on this planet. All unauthorized organisms are to be captured and later executed."

The Doctor struggled a bit, but upon realizing that he was well outmatched, he stopped. "You know, most people just have a 'Welcome to Our Planet' sign."

The wolf didn't respond as it stomped off, taking him with it.

"Right… not a fan of tourists. I forgot."

He was soon restrained properly with cuffs and brought into a large meeting room of sorts, where a number of serious and gruff looking figures sat. The leader of the group, a salt and pepper haired older man cleared his throat and earned silence from the muttering others at the Doctor's appearance.

"State your name, species, and presence here." He commanded and the Doctor fidgeted, a bit cautious as to how they'd react if he said he was Gallifreyian.

"Well, I'm the Doctor. My species is entirely extinct except me, so you've got no worries about an invasion or anything. I was just coming to pick up a friend I dropped off. She came for a sort of… top-up with your moon. We weren't planning on staying long, I promise. Honestly, I wanted to get her sooner, but there was this thing and—"

"Enough!" He snapped, lifting his lip in a snarl that was very reminiscent of what the Doctor had seen from Lux in her wolf form. "All travel to and from this planet is forbidden and any who chose to break that law are to be executed."

"Well now, that's a bit harsh, don't you think? It was just a bit of a miscalculation. What would you do if I just took a wrong turn?"

The Doctor's rambling was _not_ helping his situation.

"You would be executed." The man replied sharply. "The only reason you were not killed on the spot is because you claimed to have brought another with you. You will reveal her location, or we will hunt her down."

"Yes, well, you see that's a bit of a problem. She wasn't where I left her. That, and technically… she's from this planet. She goes by Lux. Do you know her?" He asked curiously and the man stiffened as the others began to murmur again. "Ah, so you do. I take it she's around here then?" His eyes narrowed. "If she's being treated kindly and wants to stay, I'll let her, but if you're treating her like a traitor, then you have another thing coming."

"You dare make threats in your position?" The leader growled and the Doctor took a threatening step forward.

"I'll _always_ make threats if someone I know is in danger. Did you even give her a fair trial? Did you even hear her story?"

"She failed her mission, killed a member of her pack, and abandoned her own planet for over five hundred years. She is a traitor to this planet and her abandoning her mission caused hundreds of deaths. She will _not_ be pardoned."

That got the Doctor's blood boiling.

"Don't you see how convoluted that is? She crash landed on another planet, waking up to find out that all of her comrades were dead or missing and her ship didn't work. She couldn't even send out a distress call and was tortured for part of her time there! The only reason she killed her comrade was because he'd gone rogue! All she's been doing this whole time is hoping to come back home and now that she's here, you want to _execute_ her?!"

"Silence!" The man shouted, slamming his hands onto the table before him. "You have no say in how we do things on our planet. We have heard her story and find no excuse for her returning here when she had an opportunity to return to the battlefield where she was supposed to have ended up. There is no excuse for killing one of her own kind, rogue or not. Even _we_ attempt to capture them to deal with them appropriately. She is lucky we offered her a chance to view her family before she is executed, whereas you will be killed alongside her with no such opportunity." He snapped, turning to one of the wolfs in the room by the door. "Place him in a cell and prepare for the executions."

"Sir." The wolf bowed, grabbing the Doctor and leading him away.

 _I'm not letting you die yet, Lux._

* * *

Lux sat, back up against the wall with her hands itching from the familiar tingle of silver handcuffs as the door open and another prisoner get led in. She was only half surprised to see the Doctor shoved into the cell across from hers. The wolves who brought him in left and he huffed, before looking around his new accommodations.

"You're late." Lux grumbled, drawing his attention to her and making him grin.

"Lux! Glad you're alright. Thought they might be doing something worse to you in here other than just putting you in a cell. How are you feeling? Poison out of your system?"

She glared at him, lifting her lips in a snarl that was threatening even _without_ being in her wolf form. "Does this situation look any better to you? Are you that _dense_? We're going to be executed! I might as well have died from that poisoning! What were you thinking, leaving me like that?! I thought you'd—" She cut herself short, biting her tongue to prevent from revealing something more personal and looking away. "You idiot. Look at the mess you've dragged us into."

"I didn't abandon you, Lux." He said, guessing what she'd cut herself off from saying.

"No, you just abandoned me on my own planet after I _told_ you they'd kill me if they found me, _while_ I was _dying_." She bit out. "It's nice to know how little I mean to you."

The Doctor grabbed the bars of his cell. "Lux, that's not—"

"What else do you expect me to think?!" She snapped, standing herself in anger and a deep pain reflected in her eyes. "You _left_ me, after I told you to never do this again! So, whatever took up your time must have been pretty damn important if it meant abandoning me here where my very existence is a death sentence!"

"Rose is gone, Lux!" He shouted back, making her pause as he lowered his voice. "She's gone, trapped in another universe and that was my only chance to say goodbye. You were there and tried to save her, so I thought you knew…"

Lux shook her head slowly. "I was too far gone. I remember a few snippets of conversation and that's it… I… I'm sorry she's gone."

The Doctor sighed heavily, shaking his head. "No. I'm sorry I left you. I—"

"You're not." She cut him off, making him look up, but she had already turned her back and was moving to the far corner of her cell. "Don't lie to me, Doctor. If it happened again, you would leave me all the same. I know where I stand with you, and it's nowhere near where you stand with Rose."

He wanted to argue with her, but couldn't find the words; knowing deep down that she was right and it killed him. She didn't deserve this. She didn't deserve to have him abandon her the way he did, all for a goodbye. She had been _dying_. She was _going_ to die, because of him. She had to face her family now and stand before her own people as a traitor before being executed. And it was all his fault. She should have been the priority. Even before the whole Cybermen fiasco, he should have waited to take Rose home until Lux was well again, but instead he didn't. He couldn't help but take her home to see that happy grin on her face when they said hello to her mum again. He had wanted something to distract him from his worry about Lux and boy, did he find one. It had cost him though. It had cost him Lux's trust in him and it may have very well cost her life. His only chance was to get her out of this before it was too late, but would she even want to go with him now? Or had she already given up?

"Get us out of this mess."

He whipped around at her voice, looking shocked at what she'd said despite her not turning back to him.

"I don't want to be here if it means having to face them."

He nodded, taking a seat on the ground and furrowing his brows in thought. She was giving him a chance to save her, so he would do his best.

* * *

The Doctor grimaced as he was shoved forward, a plan spinning in his head as he got a look around where he and Lux were being led to. She was quiet, solemn; afraid, maybe. The Doctor couldn't be sure, but whatever she was feeling, it wasn't good. The Doctor had been hoping to get them out of there already, but there hadn't been much to work with in the cell and there was even less now. She had to meet them. For the first time in over five hundred years, Lux was going to face her family… as a traitor.

They were both brought into a room and the person holding him went to take him out, but Lux spoke up.

"Leave him… It's fine."

The person nodded and left the Doctor with her in the room, closing and locking the door behind him.

"Lux, what—"

"Don't." She silenced him, slouched slightly and keeping her back facing him. "Don't talk or say anything until this is over. Please."

He hesitated, but nodded, going silent as there was the rattle of keys on the other door, opposite them. He watched as Lux's back straightened and she took a deep breath, expression steeling for what was about to happen and eyes locking away any and all emotions. For the first time since he'd taken her with him, she looked like a soldier. A _true_ soldier, and it terrified him. Then, the doors opened. Two guards came in and took their places in the corners of the room, before two figures entered. The larger of the two was a grizzly bear of a man. Over six foot, built like a tank with grey hair and sharp, iron colored eyes. He moved before Lux, who forced herself to face him and look him in the eye, only for the man to growl low in his throat and change.

He grabbed her by the throat, slamming her body against the wall as he towered over her; a large, ferocious grey wolf. The guards didn't move though and the Doctor bit his cheek to stay silent and keep from drawing attention to himself out of—what could only be—fear. The beast was terrifying; body scarred from eons of fighting and muscles bulging as he restrained himself from possibly killing Lux right then and there.

"You are a disgrace." He growled, jerking Lux against the wall. "How _dare_ you return. After everything I and your mother have done for you, how dare you betray us like this. You don't deserve to be executed. You deserve to be _mauled_." He snapped, teeth bared in a snarl as realization hit the Doctor like a train.

This man—this wolf—was her father and the reason the guards hadn't moved, was also out of fear. This man had complete control over the room and thankfully, he hadn't planned on staying long.

"You were _never_ my kin." He growled, throwing her into the other wall and leaving her there as he stormed out; changing as he reached the door. "And I will _never_ forgive you."

He stormed out and he door slammed behind him, giving the Doctor enough strength to rush over to Lux's side to check on her; forgetting about the other person who'd come in with the man and the guards, who were ushered out by him.

"Lux? Lux, are you alright?"

"S-Shut up." She grumbled, keeping her head bowed as she pushed herself onto her feet. "Are you here to denounce me too, brother?"

The Doctor whipped around at that, looking to the other man in the room and only now noticing the missing guards. He wasn't as tall as his father, perhaps only a few hairs shorter than Lux, but with auburn hair and strikingly bright blue eyes that made his slim body look all the more innocent. He stepped forward and the Doctor slowly moved away, watching the two closely and hoping that he wouldn't have a repeat of what just happened with her father.

"I couldn't do that." The young man said, and Lux grit her teeth, balling her fists at her sides.

"Don't _lie_ to me." She snapped, lifting her head and revealing her heartbroken, tear-filled eyes. "Why can't you just say it?! Just get it over with! Shout at me, curse me!" She grabbed his shirt desperately. "I'm a traitor! I killed one of my own pack! God, dammit! I don't deserve to even _see_ you!"

Her head fell, pressing against the chest of her brother as her hands shook and tears splashed on the floor beneath her. The Doctor had no words for the sudden display of emotion from the woman who had always kept everything so close to her chest. They were close, he realized. Lux and her brother shared a bond stronger than anything he'd seen before, and it hurt to see how broken she was when facing his possible hatred.

"Hate me…" She breathed out. "Please. You… You have to."

The young man let out a long sigh and pulled her close to him. "I could never hate you, ******. Not in millions of years. No matter what you did, because I know you." He lifted her face up and smiled a small, crooked grin. "You've always tried so hard for us, for me. Dad never understood. He didn't see anything more than his perfect pup. He never saw you sneaking out to train in the middle of the night just to make him proud. He never saw how you took on everything he threw at you just to keep me safe. Now, it's my turn to save you."

The Doctor stiffened as the young man turned to him, but he just smiled softly.

"Thank you for watching over my sister. You may call me Tran for now, but I suggest we do not dawdle for much longer." He reached into his pocket and handed the Doctor his sonic screwdriver, much to their amazement. "I assumed this would help in your escape."

"But, how did you…"

Tran shrugged. "Our people expect us to understand that things are meant to happen as the moon wills it. Someone going against this, by possibly freeing a condemned is unheard of. It makes actually doing it far easier than most would think."

"You've been with uncle for too long." Lux scoffed, having a fond smile on her face as Tran chuckled.

"Someone had to entertain him while you were gone. He lost his pupil and I lost my sister." He shifted over and bumped foreheads with her lightly. "Now, I'm losing you again, but at least this time, I'll know you're safe and alive and well." He glanced down at her injured side and nudged her. "Or, as well as you could be."

"******…" Lux murmured and he pulled away.

"I never thought you were meant for the front lines. You were always far too clever for that. I just wish there was more I could have done for you when we were younglings."

Lux reached up and ruffled his hair with a toothy grin. "You did more than enough. I would have never gotten this far without you, brother."

"Then, take this. To remember me by." He said, pressing a large tooth into her palm and opening his mouth to point at the missing one near the back of his jaw. "Lost it ages ago while changed and never felt like getting rid of it. Now, you've got a little piece of me to keep with you."

Lux let out a small whine, pulling her brother close. "You can have anything of mine back home and whatever you can grab from lockdown before dad steals it. I wish I had something to give you."

"You came back, *******." He murmured in return. "That's more than I could have ever asked for." He pulled back and grinned. "Now, are you ready for a jail break?"

She smirked in return. "Just like old times."

The Doctor's sonic whirred to life and dropped their handcuffs to the ground; giving Lux the strength to change alongside her brother now that the silver was no longer inhibiting her.

"Well then, shall we?" The Doctor asked, looking over the black and silver wolf and the tri-colored red one.

Lux gave him a toothy grin, grabbing him and practically tossing him onto her back. "Hang on then. You'll just slow us down."

He gulped, gripping her black fur before she plowed down the door and took off with her brother on their heels. He stayed back pretty far though, playing the part of someone attempting to chase her down as Lux tore through the facility. She was strong. Far stronger than the Doctor realized. She was in her element, after all. On her planet, dealing with her own people, and she was clever. She was calculating her every mood, masking any pain that would give away a weak point as she fought against unprepared guards. They made it outside and were then faced with a furious wolf; her father.

"Get back in there." He snarled as Lux coaxed the Doctor off her back and bristled herself.

"I'm sorry, father, but… I can't." She answered, answering his growl with one of her own as Tran slipped up behind the Doctor and spoke quietly.

"Get on my back."

"But Lux—"

"Can take care of herself." He muttered, watching the two as they growled and snapped at one another. "She's nearly unstoppable when she has a firm goal in mind, and father knows that. He's getting old and while she may be injured… she knows him better than anyone else. She'll gain the upper hand. Not without a few injuries, but she'll be able to down him long enough to meet backup with us. We need to go, though. If anyone realizes that you're a part of her weakness, then they won't hesitate to use that against her. For her sake, we must go."

The Doctor nodded and climbed on his back, the two of them taking off into the forest unnoticed as Lux finally lunged at her father.

* * *

It had been a while since I'd fought my father. And never once had I done so as seriously as I was now. Even he seemed startled by my speed, my strength. Even with my injuries, I had grown more powerful than he'd imagined. I _was_ a bit sloppy though. He was able to land decent hits due to my having not been able to properly train in a while and my undernourishment, but we both knew that he was wearing down. As one of the oldest wolves here, he had earned a lot of respect from his knowledge and his training methods, however he'd also lost much of the strength he had when he was fighting among the rest of us before his retirement. The hardest part, was getting myself to let go.

I'd been hesitating the first few hits, caught in my memory of my father when I was young and the training we'd gone through. I didn't want to hurt him any more than my actions up until this point had done. However, I remembered Tran was risking his own safety for the Doctor and myself. I remembered how often I had to hide my brother away and take on the burden of dealing with my father who wanted a strong youngling as his kin. My brother could never fill that role. He was a runt. Quick, speedy, stealthy. Not strong, ferocious, and fear-inducing. I couldn't allow my father to try and force his beliefs onto him, so I took his place. It had always been hard, trying to earn his respects, but I realized now that I had no chance of that.

My father denounced me. I didn't have to keep trying to impress him. I didn't need to hold back all that frustration towards him that had been building up for centuries. I didn't have to hold back anymore, because I had something I wanted to do. Something the Doctor was giving me the chance to have. I had the opportunity to travel, to be free, to do something more than endless fighting. I hadn't wanted to come back home for fear of my family's reaction to my being a traitor, but with my brother's support, all I wanted was to get away. I was finally realizing how unhappy I was here. How my times spent with my uncle or my quiet mother or my brother were the most enjoyable to me. And I was tired. So tired of the constant fighting, the oppression being forced upon me, the demand of loyalty and respect the elders required; the _moon_ required. The Doctor had opened my eyes up to a whole new way of looking at things, and as little as I said about it, I appreciated it. And now was my chance to take it for myself. I wasn't about to give up now.

I threw my father into the wall of the building, pinning him there with my forearm, and he sank slightly; angered still, but defeated.

" _Disgrace._ " He snapped and I growled back.

"I don't _care_."

A number of howls pierced the air and my ears flicked back. Reinforcements were coming. I was running out of time.

"I don't have to listen to you anymore, father. I finally have the chance to do more than just obey your words and fight until my last breath. I have the opportunity to live my life the way I wish and your words hold no power over me anymore. If you believe that I'm a traitor due to others' words and not the words of your own kin, then you mean nothing to me."

I stepped back, releasing him and I turned to leave, only for him to growl and launch himself at me with his last ounce of strength. I whirled, snapping and snarling against his sudden attack, throwing him off of me, but not before he'd managed to get to my face. I turned and bolted into the forest, grimacing as blood slipped down. _Damn, he got my left eye._ _Stubborn old man._ I slipped around trees and followed the scent of my brother, remembering how we used to hide and run after one another for fun as younglings. I shook the memory from my mind as another howl rang out and I grimaced. _They've found the scent. We've got to hurry._ I skidded out into the clearing, seeing my brother and the Doctor standing in wait anxiously in front of the Tardis and I hurried them along.

"Get inside. We need to leave _now_. They're on my scent and will be here in only a few moments."

"God, Lux, are you alright?" The Doctor asked, but I waved him off.

"Later, once we're safe. Get the Tardis ready."

He nodded and rushed inside and I turned to my brother, nudging him with my head lightly.

"I'll miss you, brother."

He smiled, brushing my mind mentally. "And I you, sister. Keep safe."

His hand reached up towards my eye and I flinched away.

"Father…" He murmured and I hummed.

"It's fine. The Doctor should have something to help. You need to go though. They can't find you here or you'll be placed under suspicion as well."

He nodded. "Then, I will go. Goodbye, _Aluxicanus_."

I nearly whined at my name. "Goodbye, _Z_ _eltranicx._ "

And with that, he took off into the forest and I slipped through the Tardis doors; never to return to my home planet again.


End file.
